Mirrored
by AevumAce
Summary: Akko went about her daily routine working hard to get one step closer to become like Shiny Chariot when all of a sudden, a certain prodigal witch started acting differently. In compliance until ep 20 / Mirror Dimension AU / Dianakko / Art cover drawn by @AoiMisaka (she's the best)
1. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

Akko had nearly finished her potions essay for Professor Lukic when someone stood in front of her. She didn't pay the person any mind as she finished it with her name with a jaunty flourish.

"Hi, Akko!"

The high pitched voice inside the library startled her as she was used to the fact that she's the one always noisy and needs to be shushed. Akko looked up at the person.

"D-Diana?" she yelp. She never heard Diana addressed her like that before or even speak with that range of voice in contrast to her usually reserved one. "W-what do you want?"

Akko immediately thought of all the screw ups and troubles she did the past few days to come up with explanations for them.

Diana's intense blue eyes that Akko used to stare so much had an unfamiliar gleam in them. Then with a playful smile that crossed the posh girl's features, Akko's jaw dropped when she realized that Luna Nova's best student who was reserved and formal in all of her facial expressions made a mischievous smirk.

"Shush," Diana placed a finger on her lips indicating silence.

At first, Akko thought that she was being too loud but then a sudden explosion happened behind the shelves in front of her. The smoke grew into a separate blue and violet color and students who occupied that space all ran about in distress.

The prestigious girl usually was the one who fixes it before the teachers in the vicinity could but instead, she giggled. With a sound that Akko never heard her utter, she watched awestruck at the jolly laughter Diana Cavendish was making.

A slight blush heated on her cheeks when she stared at her. "Diana, are you feeling okay?" she asked worriedly.

"I'm feeling fine Akko." She tried to stifle her uncontrollable giggles. "Actually I feel so much better! Akko, come with me, let's do more tricks!"

"Tricks?"

"Oh my, you're slow at observation." She then rephrased. "Prank Akko, let's prank more of the girls!"

"WHAT?" Akko bellowed. She turned around and saw that the smoke commotion is slightly being controlled by Prof. Finnelan.

She yelped when Diana grabbed her hand to flee. "Come on Akko, we must not get caught!"

"HUH?" Akko remained immobile as the British girl grabbed her headfirst towards the exit, leaving the hard work potions essay she had to do extra credit for on the table.

* * *

" _ **Diana, are you sure**_ we should be doing this? We have class in 5 minutes." Akko carefully followed _Diana_ through the corridors by making fewer noises as she could. "Diana where are we going?"

"Akko, history of magic bores you. Why do you want to go back to class anyway?"

Akko stopped in her tracks and stared incredulously at the brightest witch of their batch. Diana brought her on the third-floor veranda, overlooking the courtyard where Jennifer the Witch's statute stood with all her glory. "Diana, umm… have you been listening to yourself? You sound... unlike you at all."

"I feel a lot like myself, actually Akko. And it's very exciting and thrilling to be sneaking through the corridors, skipping class with you.

Diana's face was just a few inches away from Akko's, and she started to feel the heat tingling in her cheeks. "W-what? Diana, this is not you!"

Akko withdraws a step away from her. "Diana, did you accidentally drink a potion? Got hexed? What could cause such a thing?"

Diana seemed to enjoy the worries and concerns the Japanese girl makes and gave her a bone crushing hug. "Oh Akko, I greatly admire your passion and your determination; however, as you see there's nothing wrong with me. I just wanted to get some fun." As soon as she got that, she took her wand from her sash and pointed it on one of the students below the balcony and casted. "Oruihon Deance!"

The poor girl who just happened to pass by innocently got hit with an object transformation spell as the book she carries suddenly became a monstrous book whose pages tried to devour her. With desperate pleas and screams echoed the area, the girl scampered away, trying to remove the book from her hair and face.

Diana crouched down and started laughing uncontrollably with her mischief.

"Uwahh, Diana you're scaring me."

"AKKO!" the girl thought it was her.

"Geh!" Akko crouched down to escape the fury she was about to receive because she got all the blame. She leaned towards Diana's gleaming eyes to try to persuade her "Diana, tell her it's you. No one will believe I was innoce—!"

Before she could even finish, Diana's face turned rosy red as it was inches away from Akko's. Their breaths brushed against each other's gaping mouth. For a moment, they stared deep into each other's eyes. Akko's cheeks started to burn.

Diana reached out for something in Akko's face. That's what she thought at first before Diana's hand reached behind her neck and got pulled over until their lips smashed into each other completely. Diana tilted her head to deepen the kiss.

Akko squealed then quickly protested by pushing the girl on the shoulders back. "What's going on Diana?" she yelled. Though the taste still lingered in Akko's lips, she tried speaking out the rational part of her mind.

Though, Diana merely stared at her in mischievous wonder, her cheeks still tainted with a cute pink hue.

"ARE YOU PRANKING ME?" Akko raged.

"Oh no, my dear Akko," she reached for Akko's hand and placed it above her heart. "What I feel is truly genuine." Diana leaned towards her pinkish ears and whispered. "Meet me tonight at midnight; make sure your teammates are asleep. I'll wait outside your room."

"Ehhhh?"

"Promise me, okay?"

Akko involuntarily made a loud gulp. "Yes, D-Diana."

* * *

 _ **D**_ _ **iana's on her way**_ to her dormitory room after a hard work on night patrol. As soon as her shift's over, she can't wait to rest her muscles and drink some tea to relax. She has had trouble sleeping lately, which is why she decided to make most out of her wake state. She would read books and research up to advance on her studies in all of her classes and mull things over a nice cup of warm tea until sleep gently comes to her.

When the moon was frail as the edge of a fingernail and the sudden gusts of wind sent shadows from the fairy spirit's lights scampering along the ground, upon turning on a corridor, she nearly bumped into someone. Once she spotted the familiar short brown ponytail, she sighed in irritation. "Akko! This is the umpteenth time where you currently try to disobey the curfew rules. Might I still ask why it is this time?"

Akko smirked devilishly, it caught Diana off guard. She's used to a fidgety Japanese girl who looked like a rabbit caught in a trap, but not overconfidently full of herself. Akko's bright and huge red eyes narrowed into a glare.

"Hi Diana," she winked her eyes.

"Eh?"

Akko grinned at her, her back straightened in a good posture. Her shoulders back, her neck exposed by her jutting chin.

"Akko," Diana sighed. "If you're about to do something crazy again, I'm afraid I must escort you back to your dormitory room. Your teammates might notice you've gone and must be worried. After all, you kind of disappeared after the free period."

The girl rolled her eyes. Diana's eyebrow furrowed as the action didn't go by unnoticed.

"Seriously, this girl."

"Why don't you just admit it?" Akko drawled. "That beneath that prodigal exterior of yours is the heart of a child who idolizes Shiny Chariot."

Diana was lost for words as warmth crept up on her cheeks. She ran a hand through her hair before composing herself to discredit the claim. "I told you, I'm not sure I understand what you're claiming." She rose her chin up with a snub, "As if I'm anything like you."

The shorter girl went over to hug her. It was a full hug Diana wasn't accustomed to for so long. Akko leaned to her easily. Diana distinguished Akko's heartbeat, her soft chest against hers, and a soft sweet smelling of the girl's hair. Intoxicated, she inhaled a lungful of it. For a flitting moment, Diana felt strange in her body—A chill of some sort.

After her shock dissolved, she tried to push the clingy Eastern girl and kept her hands on each of the smaller girl's shoulder. "You're acting very odd, Akko."

"Good evening Diana, it's really past our bedtime. All I wanted was to see your face before I went to sleep." Akko winked again before she spun on her heel and turn back to where she came from.

There was something truly wrong. Maybe Akko tried to fly on her broom again and hit her head massively. A bonk on the head could fully change a person's state of the mind or psychological thinking. With her perfect posture, she strode away determinedly, but Diana decided to follow the girl to make sure she was heading towards her dormitory room.

When she turned to the corridor, the Japanese girl was gone. Surprised, Diana hauled her tired body towards the direction of Akko's dormitory. It's one of her duties as someone who was appointed of night patrolling to make sure students out of bed are escorted back to their rooms.

Arriving at the place, she saw Akko's somewhat nervous silhouette. Akko jumped upon seeing her.

"Diana!" Akko blushed while scratching her nape, she had taken great care to be silent while patiently waiting outside her room at midnight fall, but the drumming of her anxious heart reverberated in my ears. "You really came."

"Of course I came. I had to make sure you head straight to bed."

Akko snorted. "You always say stuff like that. You're like a _tsundere_."

"I believe I don't know the term."

"Oh sorry! It's Japanese lingo, you know it basically means someone who is cold to a particular person then gradually shows their warmer side."

Diana huffed in annoyance. "Just go back to bed."

"Eh?" Akko pouted, disappointedly. Discomfort set like heavy stones in her stomach. "I thought you were going to show me something."

"What are you talking about? Go to bed. It's late; I have somewhere I prefer to be."

"Uhmm okay?" Akko added uncertainty. "Good night Diana."

"You've greeted me twice. Once is already enough, Akko."

"What? But I—" she said in a sad and embarrassed voice.

"But it just seemed you only wanted me to reply. Go back to bed and get some rest, Akko. We both have 7:30 class tomorrow."

Diana caught her eyes then. The look in them was hard not to resist. Akko's lovely face was tight with conflicting emotions when she started to walk away towards her door. The slump of her bare slender shoulders made Diana's heart ache with guilt.

"Akko…" Diana called out to her. The shorter girl stopped and turned hesitantly back.

"Yes?" she bit her bottom lip nervously.

"Good night."

Akko's heart warmed at it, with a smile she said back. "Okay, see you in class."


	2. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

Diana had just finished showering. Heading back to her dorm room, she expected to go on through her schedule. She didn't expect that she would see her teammates fainted upon the entrance of their room.

"Hannah! Barbara!" Diana rushed towards them and kneeled beside them. "What happened?" she positioned herself, wand at the ready to cast a spell at something that might have set loose inside their dormitory room but found none.

The girls slowly begin to regain their consciousness. With a series of whimpers and Barbara quoting some lines of her favorite book, both girls stared at her in disbelief.

"Hey, Diana?" Barbara tried to stifle her embarrassment but failed. "What were you two—"

Hannah had to cover her mouth to quiet her. "Shut your mouth and keep it shut or I'll let the ground swallow you whole, understand?" she threatened.

Barbara nodded frantically as she finally caught on. Diana's teammates tried to act normal again. It became a little awkward but if both of them were trying to evade whatever happened, Diana was willing to let it slide.

"Were you two tricked?" Diana huffed. "I swear the student trickster is going to be revealed sooner and she might get expelled."

"Did you trick us, Diana?" Barbara asked. "Because it really felt like you di—"

"Barbara!" Hannah pulled the black haired girl and scolded her in whispers and furtive glances. "—she did confess to her once back at the Hambridge party! And this is an all girls' school, it's bound to happen!"

"What's the matter with you two?" Diana asked with a hand on her hip while observing her teammates. "What are you both all worked up with? Had you girls gotten yourselves tricked by the trickster? There are certain symptoms that you're hallucinating." She crossed her hands then held her chin in deep contemplating. "Did you girls inhale something or drank something on the way that seemed different?"

Hannah and Barbara stared at her, eyebrows raised and jaws unhinged, contemplating how to proceed the conversation without upsetting her.

"Okay, whatever you say Diana," Barbara said in a singsong voice.

Hannah looked at her unbelievingly then elbowed her. "I do believe you're just making up excuses now that we've discovered your secret."

The sentence caught Diana off guard. "What? What in a world are you girls talking about?"

Barbara just grinned back stupidly and awkwardly while Hannah shot her an 'I-can't-believe-you-did-that' look. Hannah shrugged for a reply.

"Diana!" Both of them whined. "We're your best friends! You should've told us what was going on!"

"Though, we understand—" Barbara started.

"We just want you to talk to us next time!" Hannah chimed in. "We'd like it very much if we weren't so shocked that we'd fall on the floor again."

"I— I… uhh…" Diana wanted to admit she hadn't had a clue of what they were talking about but every time she tries to articulate her thoughts, she's being interrupted by a series of best friend speeches and of such. The girls clamored to her more than usual. She made a mental note to find out what it was all about, but for now, she had more important things to do. "Girls!" she managed to snap the both of them back. "Are you implying that you two dramatically fainted again?"

"Er...well," Hannah and Barbara replied, ashamed.

"It seems to me that you girls did hallucinate, not because of a prank but because of your declining nutrients. Let's head over for breakfast, shall we? One must not neglect the importance of healthy living."

"Yes, Diana!" They both agreed enthusiastically and followed after her as they sauntered towards morning class.

At first, there was total silence as they were on their way to the dining hall but she heard the girls whispering and even more furtive meaningful looks towards each other and behind the back of her neck.

"Girls?" Diana paused. "Anything else you want to tell me?"

Hannah and Barbara gulped at her intense stare for they were caught with their chitchat.

Hannah took the lead. "We just want you to know, Diana. That… if you love Akko that much, we'll support you."

"Support also means that you should lock the door or warn us if you're both inside doing you-know-what."

"What?" Diana thought they might have some problems with their eyes, too.

"Hey, she's over there." Barbara pointed at Japanese girl her teammates on a table.

Diana glanced at them. Amongst all of the teammates formed in Luna Nova history, Akko and her teammates were unnaturally formed because the three of them arrived late together at the opening ceremony. Most believed that Lotte Yanson was unfortunate to be teamed up with the new transfer students. One came from the Southeast Asia where the local non-magic folks considered witches to be creepy as they are more into apothecary and potions while the other girl came from a non-witch lineage from East Asia and was inspired to become a witch because of Shiny Chariot. The three of them have made the oddest trio in this school. They hang out together like blood sisters, but none of them has anything in common. They are in ways similar to the green team.

* * *

 _ **Akko choked on her food**_ as soon as she noticed Diana and her teammates walked into the dining hall. Her thoughts never left Diana. The girl was all she dreamed about last night. Sure a girl will certainly occupy one's thoughts if the said girl kissed her out of nowhere.

Diana did act strangely yesterday. She hadn't told anyone that Diana decided to prank students and when Akko got worried, Diana cut her off with a kiss. Her perfect scented lips on hers made Akko's head spin. Butterflies roamed in her stomach. Her heart drummed against her chest.

Pouting, Akko got excited when Diana asked to meet up with her last night and was deeply disheartened when Diana seemingly canceled the plans. Akko knew Diana has her reasons as she was a perfect student. Perhaps, it wasn't a good time, something went wrong or there was a Professor scouting down the halls towards them.

Akko looked slightly at Diana again and wondered whether she had taken modeling or ballet class to gain all these grace to her whole body. She continued staring and noticed that she caught Hannah and Barbara glancing back at her and snubbed completely as if they were embarrassed at spying. It was totally weird for Akko.

"Akko," Lotte said. "What are you staring at? Your soup's getting cold."

"It's more like she's ogling." Sucy grinned, following Akko's line of sight. "Oh, I see." She took her hand and muttered a spell on Akko's meal.

"What are you planning now, Sucy?" Lotte asked, alarmed at seeing her cast a spell on Akko's food. Akko remained unsuspecting to it or their conversation.

"Relax, Lotte. I'm just adjusting the taste to be more horrible."

"I think Akko might be sick, Sucy." Lotte mused. "She's completely forgotten about her meal!"

"Hmm…" Sucy completely ignored her worries. "Her appetite's changed. She must be planning to eat a Cavendish."

Behind her glasses, Lotte narrowed her eyes. Sucy stifled her chortle after that.

"Sucy are you by any chance the unknown trickster at the school?"

"What? Of course not. You wound me by your accusations, Lotte. Akko's a perfect guinea pig and I tend to be loyal to my test subjects." They both glanced at Akko being love struck. "Besides, it's not as If it's the first time I did something to Akko's meal."

Lotte and Sucy waited for Akko to drink her soup but Sucy was getting impatient. "Akko!" she yelled.

That did help Akko get out of the trance. "Uwahh! Yes?"

"Eat!" Sucy pressed on. "We're going to be late."

"Okay…" Akko resumed eating. She was planning to sneak a peek at the blonde beauty but then a floating card got her attention. Sucy and Lotte eyed the card as it landed on Akko's space.

"Uh… what is—"

A huge smile grew on Akko's lips as she grabbed it. She recognized the sweet scent as soon as she had inhaled the paper. She quickly opened it read silently. Lotte and Sucy were overly curious but Akko didn't let them see any of it or share its contents.

"Yay!" Akko shouted, surprising everyone at the hall. She abruptly finished her breakfast despite the fact that the taste wasn't even good enough as it was a few minutes ago. Diana had invited her again to meet; this time, located in their free period in the afternoon at the archway. She couldn't wait no more.

* * *

" _ **You walk sexy,"**_ Akko crept up behind her.

Diana had just recently come from the observatory tower on a lovely afternoon handing over some forms for Professor Ursula when Akko decided to be weird again. She stopped to glare at her. The girl just grinned back.

Crossing her arms, Diana tried to intimidate the girl so she'd storm off angrily as she always has. "What do you want now, Akko?"

"I'm here to ask you one thing," Akko said with an angelic face. "I want you to be my girlfriend." She said in a matter-of-fact tone.

Diana's mouth flung open as she looked at her long and hard. Then she let out a nervous laugh, the blush on her cheeks reddened. "What a childish prank this is! Your jest is unneeded."

Akko's face brimmed with suspicious confidence. Diana shook her head and turned to walk on.

"Are you going to ignore me like that?" she said afterward.

Diana did. She walked the steps back to the library where she will continue her research but Akko trailed after her.

As they finally came close to the library, Diana could see Hannah and Barbara standing by the entrance. A small smile lighted up her face at the sight of them being serious in their individual studies. They spotted her and waved. Diana nodded at them.

"Are you ready to tell your friends?" Akko said.

"Tell them what?" Diana asked.

"Looks like you forget what I had told you," she said with a smirk. "You have to be with me. You're my girlfriend now."

Diana stopped in her tracks. Her jaw unhinged as she stared at the smug Japanese girl in disbelief.

"Why are you looking at me like that?" Akko said innocently. "Or you want me to tell them that I'm your girlfriend? Because I'm more than happy to do so…" She took steps towards the girls. "Hey—"

"Who said I agree to be your—" Diana started but then couldn't bear it anymore. She grabbed Akko by the wrist and walked off the path, pulling Akko along.

Their feet shuffled along the gravel path, passing the overgrown oak trees. The green leafy branches stretched out to form an archway and shielded them from the burning sun. As they reached the nearest oak tree, Diana gripped Akko's shoulders and shoved her back against it.

"Are you out of your mind?" Diana hissed; tightening her hands around Akko's collar, the shorter girl egged her on but being a pacifist, Diana let her go. She sighed, obviously irritated. "What am I really going to do with you?"

Akko licked her perfectly curved lips and smirked. Suddenly, she wrapped her slender arms around Diana's waist and pulled her hips to hers. "You look so hot when you're being forceful like that," she said in a low husky voice, sending a shiver down Diana's back.

Diana's face blushes bright red. Akko kept staring at her face with a mischievous grin. After she had snapped out of her paralyzing shock, she started pushing her away by the shoulders, but Akko kept her locked in her strong arms. Anger rushed through Diana's pulse, her jaw started throbbing and itching.

"If you find it hard to stop troubling me with your mischievous acts, I'm going to hex you, Akko." Diana said through her clenched teeth.

Akko pretended to gasp in a mocking surprise. "Oh my, is my lovely girlfriend planning to admit already?" she said and clicked her tongue as if she was giving a child some discipline.

"Akko, what has gotten into your thick head? Are you perhaps feeling ill?" Diana managed to retrieve her wand. With a flick and a nonverbal spell, Akko went flying away. "Come I'll bring you to the infirmary." When she realized how further she pushed the Japanese girl than intended, she shouted and ran towards the other side of the arch. "Akko!"

Diana nearly bumped into her but managed to halt in split second. Akko, on the other hand, was surprised so she fell on her bum. "D-Diana?" the shorter girl blushed. "Sorry, did I make you wait?"

"What?" Diana glared at her.

Akko rubbed the back of her neck, avoiding Diana's gaze. She began murmuring into something Diana concluded as her dialect. " _Tegami… yonde iru…_ "

Diana figured she whacked the girl in the head due to the push. Or perhaps Akko's head has been whacked many times; Akko's starting to have multiple personalities. She couldn't just let the girl be. "Come on, Akko. Let's get you to the infirmary." With a determined gaze, she grabbed her wrist and pulled her away.

"Eh?" Akko's eyes bulged. "Ehhhhh?"


	3. Chapter 3

Chapter 3

"So…." Lotte began. "How'd it go?"

"What?" Akko muffled under her blanket. She stayed there after Diana brought her to the infirmary, hiding from the embarrassment that she had too much expectation that she'd share another intimacy with the prodigal girl.

"The letter," Lotte provided.

"It's nothing." Akko dismissed.

"That's not what your face implied when you read it," Sucy said, nonchalantly. "Also you've gone as soon as we had a free period. Where did you go?"

"Diana just brought me to the infirmary." Akko gave a loud disappointed groan.

Lotte and Sucy looked at each other, surprised at Akko's unusual behavior. "So you were really sick?" Lotte asked.

"Why a letter?" Sucy added.

"Aaargh, I can't take it!" Akko threw her blanket over her head, a surge of determination runs through her system. "I'll ask her what's going on right now! I'll break the guarded walls of the school's tsundere!"

Lotte and Sucy glanced at each other once more before setting their eyes at their hyperactive Japanese friend as Akko changed into her school uniform and barged out the door.

The sky had already gone dark, but Akko didn't even dare to break her pace, squinting through the cold night to spot Diana's suite. It literally took her just a few minutes to get there. She breathed a sigh of relief as she saw the blue team's light was still on as it slipped through the cracks where the door opens. She knocked before she slammed it open.

Hannah and Barbara exclaimed with her eyes widened in surprise. They were in their own beds as if they were having a serious girl talk.

"Sorry to interrupt your 'bed' time," Akko said with an air quote. "But I need to see Diana. We need to talk."

Barbara gulped with a slight coloration on her cheeks. "Ummm Hannah…" she started to speak, but Hannah cut her off.

Hannah looked at Akko as if she'd just dropped from the moon. Then she shifted over to her best friend and whispered something in her ear before turning back to Akko. "She's not here. She's doing her nightly rounds."

"Does she really do that every night?"

"Every night she can on her schedule." Hannah shrugged and then raised a brow. "Why do you want to see her this time of the night?"

A small pink blush crept up to her face. "I'd like to settle something with her."

Barbara had a mini heart attack with a collective gasp, "It's so true, dear Jennifer!" then went out cold.

Hannah held her shoulders and shook the unconscious girl. "Stay with me, Barbara!"

Akko's jaw dropped at the sight. "Ah, is she okay?"

"Diana should be patrolling the west wing by now." Hannah provided before she too dramatically fainted on the bed.

Akko didn't want to be blamed for their sudden loss of consciousness so she reached for the door handle and closed it slowly. "They're probably fine." Akko murmured to herself, "probably."

Passing through empty corridors, her eyes were scanning every corner of the west wing looking for Diana, all the while avoiding unnecessary attention and noises that might get her caught.

Akko was used to seeing Luna Nova at night before, for she was always the rebel student. The halls that had always surrounded the school appeared surreal into the haunting darkness. It was as if the trees outside the windows shifted in place and buildings appeared much taller and darker. Akko had to pause and absorb the whole layout of the school in detail.

* * *

 _ **Everything ceased to exist**_ for a second and the next moment someone was able to grab Diana from behind. Her perpetrator's hands clasped over her mouth to prevent her from screaming. Diana could tell from the position of her attacker, is that she's shorter than she was but was stronger than her. The mystery girl quickly dragged Diana into a corner with her. In a sheer mortal panic, Diana dropped the broom and struggled against her to reach for her wand but it was impossible to break away from the iron grip.

"Shh! Shh! Diana, stop!" An overly familiar voice tried to quiet her. Then Diana's body seemed to freeze in recognition, Akko loosened her hands and turned Diana around to face her. It's just me."

Diana restrained all her desire to curse, "Akko! You give me a fright!" She gasped, putting her hands on her chest to stop her heart from pounding like crazy. "If you must seriously consider not doing that again and cease your late night strolls, I might consider forgiving you for your attempt to manhandle me."

"I didn't mean to snoop, but I had to keep an eye on my new girlfriend." She shrugged, retrieving the only source of light that Diana dropped from the ground and let it stand next to the wall, whispering sorry to the light faerie.

"Akko, listen to yourself." She said, ignoring her overly possessive remark. "If you come here just to tell me something nonsense like that, you better go back to your room. It's late at night, go to bed." Akko wrapped her arms around Diana quickly that she was too confused to even act. She was used to Hannah and Barbara being affectionate and hugging her all the time but for Akko, it was weird and at the same time fulfilling.

With these mixed emotions, once Diana could feel Akko's heart pounding against her chest, she melts into the hug, feeling her face go red. Then her nose caught a whiff of that pleasant scent—the scent that once made Diana's heart pound with untamed joy. Akko sure had a different smell from the rest. Perhaps it was because of the products she used from Japan. Diana let out a contented sigh.

Akko then breaks the hard but continued staring at her, giving Diana a full straight look into Akko's eyes. Her orbs were an uncanny color of red. It reminded her of Shiny Chariot's, though hers were round. Akko truly is a wonderful girl for the Japanese girl never fails to amaze her.

"I will leave you alone and unharmed, I promise," Akko said softly, "Just don't tell anyone, okay?"

Diana's face twitched and her perfectly curved eyebrows arched in suspicion, but she slowly nodded. She loosened her grip from Akko's small waist, but only for a second when she found that Akko wrapped her mouth around hers and drank her screams of protest with her lips and tongue.

Her piercing cries were drowned out as Akko kissed her deeply. Diana's eyes flared open in total shock as Akko invaded her mouth, sucking both her sleek tongue and lips with savage hunger and thirst. Akko held her so tightly in my arms as she continued to wrench herself free.

The heat of desire that radiated from Diana's body could have heated the air around them. Butterflies went soaring inside her stomach. Something awakened in her that Diana didn't approve of as she moaned in her throat all the while whimpering in Akko's arms. Diana struggled to push her away. She had no idea how strong she was until then.

"Ow!" Akko yelped when Diana bit her bottom lip, almost hard enough to draw small blood. She pulled away in pain.

Diana noticed that her soft plump lips were also flushed bright red and slightly swollen. That's when she realized what she had done. Her mind screamed no but her heart continued to defy her. This wasn't like her usual self.

"What had gotten into me?" she softly murmured.

Akko licked her lower lip, but she grinned smugly. "There you go, I'm glad you liked it, Diana. You kissed me back!"

Internally screaming, Diana clenched her fists then looked away, trying to hide her full blush. "You're better than this childish nonsense!"

The truth was, Diana indeed liked it but the fact that an animalistic hunger woke up because of Akko's surprised kiss scared her. She didn't want to delve deeper into knowing how much passion she can give to the girl.

Diana knew by heart that she was into girls but between her duties and following her dreams, she knew being a Sapphic is a problem for another day. Then Akko Kagari came to her life. Try as she may resist these feelings, she knew Akko was a beautiful person ever since the first time they met.

Akko was cute even though her mouth was full and that her silly little bun was hexed to become a stem leaf without her knowledge. But as the days go by, it's not that hard to be completely charmed by her—her passion, her determination, her loyalties and the fact that she has a believing heart made the Japanese girl so appealing for Diana's heart; though, the girl could be so hard headed and annoying at some times.

Diana was afraid of her feelings. That's all.

"Let me see your lip." Diana grabbed her want and recited an incantation to fix small cuts.

Akko grinned madly. "You truly are a _tsundere._ That's what attraction is, Diana."

Diana sighed in irritation. "Tell me, Akko. What do you plan on achieving—wait, Akko!" The shorter girl ran away into the darkness before she could even finish her sentence.

* * *

 _ **As she walked**_ past another hall, her nose caught a whiff of recognizable scent. Akko followed its lead. Then she spotted Diana scouting along the corridor with a broom and a light faerie spirit to brighten her path. Her face lined with a frown and worries.

Akko sent a quick prayer of thanks. Maybe she was too hasty. She walked toward her. But Diana's steps were purposeful like she really had someplace to go, or someone to meet? Then Diana turned to the right aisle without seeing her. Akko started running after her, with her speed. She couldn't stop moving until she reached the blonde girl.

"What do you think you're doing?" Diana turned her face to her.

Akko looked right into her stirring vivid eyes as her mouth went ajar. They were deep blue and twinkled like morning stars. She lost her mind in those mesmerizing pools. "What?"

"Did you think you could just waltz in and steal a kiss from someone and leave in the middle of a conversation?" She knitted her perfect eyebrows.

"Eh?"

"Have you no decency Akko? This jest has gone too far!"

"Wait, you mean I kissed you?"

"Yes, and it's unclear to me on what you might gain from this nonsense." Diana placed her free hand on her hip. "Explain yourself, Akko." She used the broom and pointed it dangerously near Akko's face.

Akko noticed the faerie spirit and looked at the little guy for answers. The bright faerie shrugged. Now Akko wished she understood this little guy's language like Lotte does. The only other languages she knows are fish, other faerie dialects and a little bit of bird.

Looking back at the fearless blonde, she wanted to say something to stop her misunderstanding but no word came out of her mouth. This wasn't what she had planned when she wanted to confront Diana about what happened last time. Akko was sure she didn't kiss Diana. Sure they kissed, but it wasn't like whatever Diana described. It wasn't even minutes ago, it was days ago. Akko was also sure it was Diana who kissed her unsuspectingly.

She wasn't this mad when Diana kissed her out of the blue. Does this mean Diana's experiencing a bipolar disorder? Or maybe just maybe, Diana regretted kissing her so she's acting like this to throw her off.

"Diana," Akko raised her hands in an I-give-up signal. "I really don't know what you're talking about. I just arrived here."

"Enough, Akko." she cut her off. Diana gave her one last disappointing look before turning her back to storm away. The only thing Akko could do was staring at her in silence.

For a moment, Akko couldn't seem to breathe. Akko wondered if she had a real heart attack. One part of her wanted to go back home and forget all about it, another part of her wanted to cry her relationship dramas to Lotte and Sucy and the third part wanted to explain everything to Diana and the last part of her and end all the miseries.

"What should I do now?" she muttered under her breath.

Akko stepped into the hallway again and darted out toward where Diana was heading. But she was gone. "How did I lose her so fast?"

She ran all the way until where the hallway ends and passed by an open storage room.

"Weird," Akko mused. Usually, these rooms are shut closed, but it's sure that a certain blonde used this to hide from her but forgot to close the door in haste. Wasting no time, she dashed inside.

The windows were open, inviting a fresh cold breeze inside and the place was brightly illuminated by the moon. Diana stood there shocked as she faced an ancient wooden mirror that they used for the Samhain festival.

"Akko!" Diana's eyes widened when she saw her.

Akko didn't want to start on how amazingly perfect Diana's blonde highlighted hair looked under the moon glow because it hurts without remembering how deeply she feels for her.

"Umm, please don't be mad at me, Diana!" She rushed over to her. "I didn't even know why you're mad at me! I didn't kiss you out of your consent! I didn't even kiss you—you did! Remember? It was like days ago."

Diana remained her eyes at the Japanese girl, surprised. She glanced at the mirror, carefully then grinned at her. "I recall it quite vividly, Akko. It happened just yesterday." She took a deep breath and flipped her hair. "Don't be sad now, okay? Let me make it up to you tomorrow."

"But every time you say we'll meet, you deny it!"

"Okay, I won't deny it next time." Diana smiled, reaching out for the shorter girl and pushed a lock of brown hair behind her ears. "Tomorrow is Saturday! We'll be going places you want to go, Akko."

Akko gasped. "It's a date then?"

Diana nodded.

"Yay!" she screamed her signature hoorah, lifted a leg and twirled around. That's when she noticed something—something that's rather missing, "Hey Diana, where did your broom go?"


	4. Chapter 4

Chapter 4

"Trouble in paradise?"

"I know you quoted a book line again, Barbara."

"It's a code, Hannah. You know when we talk about Diana and you-know-who." Barbara wiggled her eyebrows.

"So, she has love troubles?"

Hannah shrugged as she hummed the I-don't-know tune. "Let's ask her."

Despite the low murmurs, Diana can perfectly hear them. So when they reached for her, she sat up straight, fixed the books on her desk and cleared her throat.

"I appreciate you, girls, worrying for me. It just so happened that my frustration comes from reading too much and my head feels like explosive spells altogether."

"All right?" Hannah frowned, clearly she wasn't fooled. "Well… if you'd like to, asides from taking your meds, take a break studying and maybe go with us to Blytonbury."

"Great idea!" Barbara giggled. "We could go shopping!

Diana turned her head at them and arched an eyebrow. "Thanks for thinking of my well-being. I appreciate it that you girls want me to take a break but I prefer the company of these books."

A pile of parchments and a few books stared back at her. She looked back at the page she's reading and was surprised that the pages got turned. Recalling, she knew she was somewhere in Chapter seven then noticed a small pink paper she's sure she didn't use as a bookmark.

"Diana, are you still there?" Hannah called her back to earth.

"Why are you so quiet, today?" Barbara chimed in.

"Oh, I'm just thinking," Diana replied.

"About?"

"Nothing," she dismissed them. "Don't you girls have plans to do today? I plan to stay here with this research. You should go."

"Okay, but don't forget to eat lunch."

"And rest if your head goes dizzy from all the readings."

She gave them a small smile.

Diana couldn't wait for them to leave but she had to hasten their departure for she couldn't waste another moment t unfold the note that was delivered to her and read what she said in the finest rushed penmanship she has ever seen.

 _Meet me at the Blytonbury t_ _own, please?_

Diana cringed. What makes the girl think she would answer her call whenever she wants? She also drew a smiley face with a shining wink and her signature bun popping out.

She was going to rip the note, but then she remembered that the girl went all the trouble to send her a letter using a skilled magic spell that she might've practiced the whole night.

Sighing in defeat, Diana stood from her desk and began returning them in their places and wore her traveling school shawl over her shoulder. Besides, she pondered, she also wanted to go to the town's library in the first place. Maybe she should just go and get it over with.

* * *

" _ **You came!"**_ Akko's eyes glistened. "I'm glad. I thought you were going to bail again!"

Diana squinted at her, clueless about what she's saying despite the fact that it was her who invited her out here. She noticed Akko hiding something behind her, something that was pink. "How long have you been waiting?"

"Oh umm…" she began. "Since this morning, I came with Sucy and Lotte and had our own ways."

Diana stared at the sun's shadows and figured it was past noon. Akko was waiting for her for more than five hours.

Akko bashfully revealed what she was hiding and pointed it towards Diana who was taken aback at what she saw. "Please accept this! I just thought it was pretty, it reminded me of you so I just had to buy you one."

Diana composed herself internally as she saw a tulip on Akko's hands. She doesn't know if the small girl knew what the flower meant but it seemed fitting in the way Akko was behaving.

She took the tulip, their hands grazed, igniting a static between them. Akko blushed hard, cheerful that the girl she likes accepted her gift.

Diana clenched her jaw from restraining herself. The Japanese girl was too cute for her own good. "The niceties are observed, Akko." She used her wand to place a protective spell on the flower so she could just put it in her pocket without crushing it. "Now should I forget my manners with you, it should be because I'm at my limit with you. So… what do you require from me?"

With a shy grin, Akko managed to muster it out confidently while fiddling with her hands. "Let's go to the bookstore! I know you'll just love it. You can introduce me to books you've read and share to me what they are all about!"

The taller girl sighed. "That's the library, Akko. I know you've got more time in your hands right now but I know it's too quiet for you, and requires more patience than you're used to exhibiting and you might get bored and do something reckless."

The Japanese girl turned to face her, a small pout on her face that Diana wished she didn't find so damn adorable.

But she did.

"I read few books, you know—" Akko told her. "Especially ones that I enjoy, but there are books for classes back home at Japan that seemed like a chore. Do you know I prefer reading the original English versions better than the Japanese translation? I use it so I can enhance my English skills to prepare for attending Luna Nova."

Diana couldn't understand why seemed so full of herself when she shared it. "Was that a good quality for…" she watched her phrasing, "…the Japanese?"

"Oh yes!" Akko giggled, shyly. "Do you have a second language, Diana?"

"Do you want to know all the languages I know or the ones we only used for magic?"

Akko gritted her teeth. "Okay okay, you're oh so talented and oh so smart." She kicked the dirt on the path.

And so Diana gave in. "I see," but remained skeptical. Perhaps Akko really did want to apologize to her that she'd accompany her to shop for books. "Then we shall explore the library."

Akko clapped her hands together, a look of pure glee lighting up her features.

Peering over at the lined bookshelves, Akko smiled as she recognized the authors: Shakespeare, Milton, Dickens, Atwood, Chaucer, Austen, Carroll, Rowling, among various other classic writers among the classical literature. On the other shelf, she found several books about physical training, booklets about proper stretching and muscle toning, as well as a nutrition guide specifically written for the Fitness readers. Then on the other, she saw science books like geography, astronomy, political, medical philosophy, calculus and such.

She was looking at the children's and young adults' fiction area when she noticed she has separated from Diana. Quickly, she looked for her among the customers and introverts among the area then saw her heading towards a door that Akko hadn't realize was there a moment ago. Diana was waiting for her so she sprinted towards her.

Blytonbury's library is like a maze of thousands of bookshelves zigzagging everywhere. There were non-magical books and magical books for both witches and mundanes, Akko figured the place had all books under the sun. She saw new and old books written by witches and mundane. She even saw the Nightfall series with its own designated shelf. She was about to head over towards the comic books shelves when she spotted Marvel comics when Diana called for her, making sure she won't get lost.

Akko's glad Diana was with her. She doesn't have a good clearance; the whole place might as well trap her in. She wondered if there were unsuspecting customers who have had actually got lost in here. But as she stood in the darkest corner, gazing at a giant bookcase from floor to ceiling, she didn't see anyone. This corner must not be so famous or maybe forbidden and the only student who has the access is Diana.

Akko noticed Diana wrapping in the crispy smell of gazillions books and dried wooden shelves and furniture in the library. The air was thick with paper scents for Akko's sensitive nose, but Diana loved the smell. Diana might've often come here for it didn't take her long to find the spot.

Diana got a little engrossed in an old-looking book. So old, in fact, that Akko probably would have been afraid to touch it. Her clumsy hands would probably rip the thing in half before she'd even made it past the first chapter. Diana, on the other hand, was gentle and graceful and had been holding books all her life. She could read something a thousand times and not leave a single crease in the spine.

"Are you a good listener, Akko?" Diana said, noticing the shorter girl staring at her. "I tend to over share my fondness for them."

Akko nodded dutifully.

Looking into the sweet, bright-eyed girl, she smiled. "Do you want me to read you the summary in a like synopsis way or like a storyteller kind of way?"

"I'm good with anything!"

As Diana tells her adventure of a young witch who invented and learned a lot of spells along with her journey to magical places around the world, Akko was pleased to note that the storytelling mood had lifted the British girl's spirits.

"Wow!" Akko said. She remained genuinely interested at how Diana explained the story to her. "All she did was kept a journal while traveling then it got published when she handed the manuscript to an old friend?"

Diana nodded as she returned the book back to its spot on the shelf. "She died before she saw that happened. That's one of the few informative novels that I read during my youthful days."

"Do you have any books that you started but discontinued?" Akko asked.

"No, I finished all of them." Diana then started to scan the bookshelves some more, looking for a possible story or reading material that Akko might be interested in—something that could be related to Chariot or her favorite genres.

"Hey look!" Akko pulled out a dusty and mangy old book that had dust and webs in it. With a sneeze, she regretted it terribly and rid the book of more allergy potential and showed Diana the author and the title.

 _A Collection of the Oral Vespers of the Mighty Aswangs (1419) by Hiyas Manbavaran_

"Someone related to Sucy wrote a book and has been translated all the way here!" She handed it to Diana who took it willingly and read the summary inside.

Dian's face darkened a little. "It's a Curse journal."

"Ehhhhhhh?"

"And they sell it with a large amount of price; quite understandable, though I'm curious how it's being sold all the way here where young students could stumble upon them and might use them recklessly." She turned few more pages delicately. "And most procedures here show how the Manbavarans fight off other monsters during ancient times."

Diana continued narrating the whole story as it was Diana's first time in reading it too.

"Ohhh…"Akko awed at the way she delivered the story to her, and then came to wonder how bookish Diana is. "I'm just so amazed at you, Diana. Reading something that I don't like really sometimes discourages me from continuing."

"You mean you enjoy the fiction ones over textbooks, travel journals, and research books?"

Akko scratched her nape in embarrassment. "But I'm trying to learn more about magic! I tend to drool a lot while studying but at least Professor Ursula encourages me a lot."

"She's a great teacher, Akko." She complimented the professor. Then in the short silence they shared, she knew she needed to continue her praise and decided to add another compliment for the shorter girl beside her. A blush appeared on her cheeks. "She's able to teach you so well, and I've been able to see quite a progress since we first met. Tell me, Akko. What sort of books to you fancy reading before going to bed?"

"Well, asides from comic books, I like stuff about myths, legends, and folklore. The Japanese culture has a lot of them and I liked what I read on Chariot's cards! After I bought and read them, I never wanted the information to end. So I ended up ordering a bunch of books online. I don't know if they were real books or just fictitious stories written by non-magical people." She laughed, though a little embarrassed. "I was young back then."

"How about you, Diana? Do you read fiction novels or comic books?"

"I don't really have time to read such fictitious worlds, Akko but I do have read the first volume of Nightfall as I was curious and it seemed the story hadn't clicked my interest. The premise itself sounds like a mish mash of over imaginative creation. Such as the ones one of my ancestors wrote."

"Ehhh?" Akko said, surprised. "One of your ancestors wrote a novel? What's it about?"

"I had read it once to simply relax my brain from the amount of information I had and decided to read the sci-fi novel. It was written in the 1660s called 'THE BLAZING WORLD' by a collateral ancestor named Margaret Cavendish."

"Ohhh," Akko pondered.

Turning the book over to read the summary once more, Diana could see Akko's eyes on her through her thick lashes. She quickly stole a glance from the corner of her eyes and sure enough, was staring up at her, with no shame to hide the fact that she was staring too much. Diana bit her bottom lip nervously as her complexion changes to a pink hue and the shivering hand that nearly touched hers, things such as logic did not seem to be important any longer.

Diana's redness disappears slowly, and her interest begins to gather in Akko's round red eyes. The same eyes she found both curious and compelling. "I've always wondered," she started. "How are your irises red?"

"Wha—?" Akko can only stare at her.

"Your eyes, Akko, why are they red?"

"I thought we were talking about the books?"

"I thought we were getting acquainted." Diana smiled. "We are sharing a common interest in books, it's natural we bond, am I right?"

"Oh definitely, but—"

"I mean do you have a parent with a red eye color? Or was it—if you could excuse my term—a birth defect?"

"It's hereditary I guess? My mom also has red eyes." Akko blushed at Diana, who has leaned forward in an attempt to examine her eyes better. "Do you know who also has red eyes?" she grinned.

Diana knew Akko was going to mention Chariot and since she didn't want to be exposed as a fellow fan, she skimmed over the selections. There were some she had heard of like Grimm's Fairytales, Greek and Roman Mythologies, and Eastern novellas of fables and legends.

Akko pouted when Diana seemingly ignored her a little but then again, the great Diana Cavendish is on a date with her. It's more than enough. Something interesting caught her eye, a huge beam plastered on her face and went for it.

Diana kept herself busy when Akko approached her with another book.

"What's this book about? I don't' get it. I don't get any of this. It doesn't make any sense." Akko held out a small paperback to her. It wasn't a mythology book or research book; it was actually a fiction novel.

Her eyes widening, Diana took the book from her. "They still sell these here? It's too unrealistic and too unscientific for anyone to read at this modern age."

 _The Description of a New World, Called the Blazing World (1666) by Margaret Cavendish_

Akko must've really wanted to know what the book is about for her to easily find it.

"It's…" Diana began, unsure of how to explain to Akko the summary of the book. "As I have said before, she was the only Cavendish who wrote a fictitious book. It's about the world similar to ours and how a non-magical lady got there by finding a portal at the North Pole and become Empress of their world."

"Wow!" Akko said another smile found its way on her lips. "Tell me more!"

As much as Diana doesn't want to, she was trapped by Akko's pretty smile. She didn't want the smile to fade and wanted the smile to linger a little longer. " The last story for today, Akko, the night is upon us in an hour."

"Give me a ride back okay?" Akko grinned, hopeful. Truthfully, she loved it every chance she could to have a broom ride with Diana.

"It'd be my pleasure, Miss Kagari." Diana smirked and mentally wanted to jab herself by flirting back.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Margaret Cavendish is a real person and her written novel exist while Hiyas Manvabaran is not and her book don't. Also, Akko is canonically a Marvel fan.**


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Diana sighed as she fidgeted in her bed. Not being able to find a place or a position to suit her needs, she noticed the pink tulip Akko gave her hours ago sitting on her desk. Diana placed it perfectly on her desk.

Akko.

As she let her thoughts wander and started pressuring her mind, she wished she could know all immediately. She thought and thought about the events of that night, but today nothing was easy; she couldn't possibly understand Akko's sudden interest in her for she hadn't looked for her attention in the first place.

She lifted from the bed, stretching her arms and back, hoping it would grant her a bit of comfort, but the spasmodic pain, localized somewhere around her waist didn't seem to want to leave her side anymore. She shouldn't have ridden a broomstick without stretching after.

With such confusion nesting in her heart as she had never experienced before, she had always been the type that doesn't look for answers in the obvious, but rather enjoyed speculating in what wasn't easily revealed. She didn't mind being the object of someone's questioning reason, but she thought that Atsuko Kagari was surely not the type of person to fall for a girl like her—if she was interested in girls at all.

Akko was beautiful, energetic and could be quite the wild annoying girl. Who could've thought that she could be so surprisingly endearing? So Akko gaining a liking for her was rather strange, who, despite what other witches had said about her over the years, still thought of herself as being a regular human being. Diana didn't see a true beauty in herself, deep within her physical appearance or the great reputation of her last name.

But there was something about that brown haired girl with deep red eyes and reckless attitude that made her heart skip a beat, despite the fact that her mind constantly alerted her that such thoughts of her should be cast aside immediately.

An acute anxiety took over her heart, numbing her fingers, causing her heart to beat faster and her breath to accentuate, as though the air had become toxic while thinking of Akko. She pressed her left hand to her chest, trying to calm the racing pounding but at that point, nothing seemed to help ease the panic attack. She couldn't control her breathing, counting silently in her mind wasn't in anyway aiding and instead would only amplify the exaggerated state of apprehension.

Diana couldn't lie to herself anymore that she was attracted to Akko Kagari.

* * *

 _ **Akko couldn't stop**_ giggling through the night. Lotte and Sucy were actually both disturbed from their slumber as Sucy did threaten to force Akko to drink a silencing potion to let the team sleep in peace but Lotte got a hold of the situation by calming both of them down before the other teams from the next door hears. In return of all these, they made Akko promised to treat them with parfaits and sweets on this fine Sunday morning.

It was the first ever date she had with Diana and it had gone well. She couldn't stop visiting the memory where Diana would tell her stories while fixing her blue eyes towards an immobile object in the distance, thus being able to tell it without further implication on her behalf. She had a peculiar manner to distance herself from her retelling, hoping to give Akko a candid side of the events, even if she had been directly involved with how she told it with her opinion.

She and her team headed to the leyline with their usual cheery mood when Sucy asked, "Mind telling us about your date last night?"

"Mission accomplished!" Akko yelled. "It went well."

"And?" Sucy wanted more details.

"Nothing else, we just had a wonderful time at the town's library."

"I don't believe you," Sucy said.

"Eh?" Akko pouted. "Why not?"

"You and Diana went out together and you came back... I reckoned something happened. What did you do?"

Akko's face reddened at that. "What are you implying? We didn't do anything else!"

"Quiet down, Akko." Lotte calmed her down. "The whole student body might hear you."

"There was nothing happened between us." Akko toned down, but feeling kind of bold for the first time, "…at least not yet."

"Ooooh!"

"Stop it!" Akko said, her cheeks blushing. "Or I won't tell you guys anything."

Both her teammates grinned, while Lotte was cute and meek while Sucy made it creepily with her sharp teeth.

"So…" Sucy started and looked around. "You're not going to meet up with Diana today? Is she coming with us?"

"Well… I wanted for her too." Akko said, disappointed. "But she said she volunteered to patrol the hallways and classrooms again—and besides!" She shouted a little louder and clenched her fists. "We're not official just yet."

"Lame!" Sucy barked.

* * *

 _ **Diana had been**_ enjoying a quiet Sunday morning after the drowsiness left her after she was finally able to find some sleep.

Akko invited her to go out with her friends her because she somehow caught herself up with using her allowance as a compromise, but Diana instantly made an excuse because she was embarrassed at the least. Diana knew that Akko's friends were aware of their cat-and-dog like relationship with each other and it's bound for them to know soon that the cause of their friendliness was because of some bigger attraction.

It's not that Diana doesn't want to be seen with Akko in public. It's just because she was still uncomfortable with this entire dating thing as she lived her life without the thought of romance yet. She wanted to take things slow with Akko. If she wants this romance to blossom, she wants to have what she has with Akko to stay forever.

So now, to uphold her excuse, she volunteered to patrol today.

Upon hearing, Hannah and Barbara decided to accompany her instead with her morning routine to patrol the halls of anything less than what's acceptable to uphold the reputation of Luna Nova Academia, while the faculty and staff enjoy the rest of their Sunday. Though, they didn't know all about her so-called official date with Akko yet.

"Thanks for accompanying me today, Hannah, Barbara," Diana said, making the girls feel appreciated because she really does value her friendship with them.

"It's our pleasure, Diana!" Hannah replied.

"And we also want to know where you went yesterday," Barbara added. "When we got back to the dorm, you weren't there or anywhere."

Hannah nodded. "You arrived around dinner time and we hadn't had the chance to ask because you seemed to be in a good mood."

"Oh, you don't need to concern yourselves with it." Diana slightly smiled at the memory of yesterday. "I just had a little bit of fun that's all."

"Fun?" Hannah and Barbara stopped on walking and stared at each other at the mere mention and the mere thought that Diana Cavendish—the uptight hardworking studious girl—had fun.

In an instant, Diana saw two flashes of shadows running at the far edge of the dark hallway at the corner of her eyes. It was a chilling sensation that she had to look over her shoulder and found two dark hidden figures hovering as the fled through the triforium styled window. It was all a blur and happened too fast for her to register what that was. Diana was going to investigate when she was frozen in place.

"CAVENDISH!" Somebody bellowed, causing the Diana and her girls to jolt at the loudness that surprised them.

Without saying another word, Amanda, the overall troublemaker, bolted out like lightning on her broom. All Diana saw was her blurry form flying forward and the fiery redhead just crashed into her, knocking the broom, books, and wands as they both went airborne to the floor a few feet away.

"DIANA!" Both Hannah and Barbara clung to each other when the sudden threat appeared but when they got a clear picture, they saw Jasminka, Constanze and the German girl's little robot trailing after their leader, Amanda, with apparent surprises in their own faces.

"You bitch!" Amanda yelled, wrapping her hands around Diana's throat. "How dare you do that to Akko?"

"C-calm down, Amanda!" Jasminka called after her.

"What the heck is wrong with you?" Diana spat back, trying to pry Amanda's hands off.

Amanda hissed and drew her fist back, intending to punch Diana but then her motion stopped. Jasminka muttered a spell to petrify Amanda's fist in the air.

"Stop it!" Jasminka cried again and rushed over to grab the redhead, but she didn't budge. Anger had clouded her mind, apparent in her face.

Diana gasped in air and coughed when she was freed a little. "For whatever reason you attacked me, you're going to wish it's something reasonable!"

"Don't act like you don't know, Cavendish. You took advantage of Akko!" Amanda cried and kept jabbing the Russian girl off her with her elbow, but the girl has a strong grip. "And you kept escaping from me! The innocent doesn't run!"

Hannah and Barbara averted their gazes from Diana and Amanda to the rest of green team who nodded with confirmation.

"We heard them," Jasminka provided while struggling to keep the redhead at bay. "When we checked up on them, we caught them but Diana took Akko and fled away."

With their faces widening in horror and at the realization that fun could mean more than they thought it would be, the blue team fainted and hit the ground headfirst. Diana knew the girls are hopeless and judging by the impact that shook the earth, they wouldn't be waking up anytime soon.

She scrambled to look for her want to see if it was reachable but then saw the fact that it was beyond her reach.

"So where did you hide Akko?" Amanda grabbed the blue eyed girl by the collar. "I didn't know you had it in you to sexual harass another student, miss goody two shoes."

It seemed that Jasminka has failed in stopping her as she fell on her rear. Amanda might have gotten an adrenaline rush of power.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about," Diana said truthfully.

"You think acting ignorant is going to help you?"

Luckily for the American girl, there was no faculty that could catch her and expel her right on the spot but there were student by passers who noticed. Diana hadn't registered until now that they attracted a crowd. Possibly someone could've fetched a teacher.

Everyone was staring at them, gasping in disbelief. Diana was sure they all heard everything. Even Diana herself knew she didn't do such things. Diana locked eyes with Avery and her team as they looked around and then backed away slowly. Avery glanced at them again and then turned on her heels before she and her team ran out of the courtyard to call for an available teacher.

"Get off me!" Diana pushed her forward with all her strength and grabbed her wand swiftly.

"You took advantage of Akko!" Amanda sneered, grabbing hers too and flashing her sharp teeth. The American girl knew she couldn't outmatch Diana so she decided to use a strengthening spell. "Vega Varulus!"

And charged.

The crowd gave them a reasonable space and decided to keep away from them. Jasminka carried both Hannah and Barbara out of the way as Constanze and Stanbot followed.

Diana casted a magic barrier around her as she considered not harming the ferocious angered redhead so all she could do are defensive spells and try to reason with her.

"How could you?" Amanda whimpered.

Diana understood where her anger is coming from, though the redhead's accusations were just plainly absurd. "For the last time, I haven't the slightest thought of what you're accusing me."

"I saw you! We saw you! Jasna, Cons and I!" She yelled. "Don't lie to me!"

Diana sneered. She could never ever take advantage of Akko. Sure she was attracted to her, and she was sure she didn't behave in a particular improper sexual way with Akko at all—at least not without her consent and both parties' mutual understanding. They did kiss, but it was Akko who pushed her luck on her. No one caught them that time and she didn't run away or held Akko hostage.

She could tell from Amanda's raw anger that she's not lying but she was fooled. It could've been a work of illusion magic. Someone was trying to get this to happen. Who would've wanted them to fight like this?

"You're open!" Amanda kicked her square on the jaw.

Diana's jaw was forcefully shut. She scolded herself mentally for losing focus and letting the redhead hit her.

"AMANDA! DIANA!"

Diana could hear Professor Ursula's frantic screams and her running footsteps before she blacked out from the immense pain.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

The infirmary room was suddenly bathed in silence, occasionally broken by the boiling kettle on a gas cooker or the sound of chairs being pushed aside. Professor Ursula managed to make the students keep their mouths shut so none of it would reach the other Professors or even the Headmaster. It was good enough that there were only a few of those who saw but young girls love to talk. It'll not be long enough now before what happened will get soon out of hand.

Diana and Amanda both were in their respective hospital beds, Professor Ursula stood at their feet's end with Jasminka, Constanze and Stanbot at the far edge of the room.

The healer wasn't on duty so Professor Ursula took the liberty of treating the worst damages such as broken wrists and dislocated shoulders. Hannah and Barbara lay still on the other beds, still unconscious.

"What caused them to have a head injury?" the French professor asked everyone in the room.

Diana winced at the bruise on her jaw. She couldn't provide an answer to the question so she just placed an ice compress on her chin and mentally placed her hand upon her head while everyone else shrugged.

"So…" Professor Ursula spoke, unsure how to stop the tension between the two students. "Miss O'Neill, do you know what brings you here? No—don't answer that!" She placed her palm on her head then formed a steeple with her hands, contemplating.

"I don't even know how to begin this." Amanda offered.

"Well, the beginning sounds like a good option," Diana mumbled angrily, forgetting the pain in her jaw. "I doubt however you sugar-coat your intentions of harming me will change what's in store for you."

Professor Ursula shot her a glance and she fell silent again. Alcor, standing over a banister, watched all of them as the tension from the resounding silence has gotten louder. Constanze continuously fidgets as Stanbot remains perched on her shoulder while Jasminka began to munch on her potato chips, nervously.

When the kettle screamed, the group was momentarily relieved. Professor Ursula sighed and went on to pour the girls each cup and some recharged batteries for Stanbot.

"It was quite a shock you know, Miss Avery and her team ran to me for help and reported to me that a student assaulted the best student." Professor Ursula blew off some steam on her tea. "Thank goodness, I had managed to seal all the ancient magic artifacts that were used in the Samhain festival properly before I ran off to you." She took a sip before placing the cup on the table. "So, do tell me everything from the start."

She and Amanda took turns in explaining what happened. Amanda's speech was longer than hers as she told a tale of what she saw. Diana knew the difference of someone making up stories and someone who really saw what truly happened. But Diana knew in her heart, she didn't do any of what Amanda said. It was a civil talk if you count out how many times Amanda lost her cool and Professor Ursula had to restrain her from continuing.

Diana debated internally if she would speak about the earlier puzzling moment before Amanda even crashed into her. She doesn't even know herself what she saw. It could be an illusionary magic as well or her brain messing up because the long hard work is now weighing upon her which is why she started seeing things now,

A breeze penetrated the room making Diana flinch at the mere hearing of the curtains fluttering. The windows were open. It was almost dark and it seemed at that point that another day had gone by purposeless.

"You had your way with Akko?" the French professor gasped, her tone sharp.

This time it was Diana's turn to succumb herself to the bashing silence and deep within her mind, try to make a single coherent sentence that supposedly would make a good response to their words; but at that moment, with their eyes fixing on her, her cheeks having awkwardly gained a scarlet complexion.

"I didn't Professor. As I have said before, I did no such things of what she accuses me of."

Professor Ursula stared at both of them in silence, contemplating. Silence fell between everyone, a silence that Diana couldn't break.

Diana had spoken all she wanted to share. It was now up to the Professor to make a judgment call. She knew what Professor Ursula was thinking. Illusionary magic is forbidden in the school grounds to make such commotion as large as this.

* * *

" _ **It's weird,"**_ Sucy looked around while carrying a bag of rare expensive mushrooms. "Where are the important interesting people?"

"What are you talking about, Sucy?" Lotte asked as they arrived back from their weekend trip.

"I was expecting that we'd bump into something amusing." She said nonchalantly

Akko cried miserably as she stared at her wallet and all hard earned allowance. "Sucy!" she wailed. "I only promised I'd buy you sweets."

"Akko…" Lotte eyed Akko awkwardly and at the same time pitiful for her. She only made her buy some parfait and that just it, unlike Sucy.

"I used up all my allowance's savings until the next month! My parents will kill me if I ask for an advance! I need a part-time job!" Akko slumped on the ground. "But who would hire me?"

"What about Diana?" Sucy commented. "I'm pretty sure Diana will take you under her wing. Be her maid."

Lotte looked at her horrified. "Sucy! They are dating!"

"So what? I'd be giving Diana a favor." Sucy said, doesn't seemingly seeing the problem. "And besides this is Nightfall material, don't you think Lotte?"

Lotte unexpectedly looked like she's suffering from sleep deprivation.

"I'll talk to Diana!" Akko yelled desperately and posed like some superhero she read in mundane comics. "She may not allow me to serve her but desperate time calls for desperate measures!"

"Akko?"

The red team saw Avery and her team walking towards them. Akko became wary as each step the purple team makes towards them may have brought her news she wouldn't like. Because by the way, they looked relieved to see them were as if they were looking for them all day but it the worry etched on their faces hadn't left.

"Akko," Avery crossed her arms. "Diana asked for you."

Akko's eyes lit up as she stared at Avery and her team in surprise as if she couldn't believe what she just heard. "She did?"

"Yes," Mary said. "She's in the infirmary right now."

Avery's eyes were hard like stone. "I don't know what you did Akko, but if Diana's hurt because of you—"

Anger flaring up, Akko cried. "What are you talking about? Diana got hurt?"

Mary nodded meekly, hiding behind Avery when Akko looked like she could kill innocent butterflies around the corner. "Tell her we tried to make the girls shut their mouth before they could be babbling it to the other students."

Seeing the pointed look on the Japanese girl's face, Avery seemed to come back to her senses and then she stepped back with a shamed look, shielding her teammates before they could become victims of another hot-tempered girl's wrath. "We don't know what really happened all right? All we know is that that redhead—Amanda punched Diana in the face."

Akko's blood rushed backward through every vein in her body and her ears turned hot in anger. Lotte and Sucy looked at each other in alarm before Akko bolted out towards the infirmary in high speed.

With her heart as tormented by fear as if it were her grandfather who had collapsed and had required immediate assistance from a professional doctor back in Japan. She didn't understand what had just happened and hoped that upon seeing Diana, she would know more about the situation.

The moment Akko entered the door; she was greeted by unconscious, solemn and surprised faces of the green team, Professor Ursula and Diana and her teammates.

But all Akko could focus on was that huge fresh red bruise under Diana's jaw. "Diana!" she yelled, fear etched her worried heart.

"Akko..." Diana watched as the shorter girl cupped her cheek, carefully not touching the bruise. Something warmth spread from the sudden but brief contact. It all seemed a bit therapeutic.

"Why would you do that Amanda?" Akko asked through her clenched teeth.

"Akko..." Diana stuttered alarmingly, sensing the violence raging through her system. She hasn't seen Akko's angelic face bear this much anger before then. "Akko I'm all r—"

Before Diana could finish her sentence, Akko's vision dimmed. She then focused on a single person and made one smooth move and flung Amanda off the bed and onto the floor hard. The air was knocked out of Amanda's lungs.

Akko's face bore the most murderous expression Diana had never seen. She was terrifying this way, but strangely, Diana felt protected. She gulped. This was how others see them earlier. First, there was panic, confusion then worry. Everybody yelled in fright. It was happening all over again.

Raising her clenched fist, Akko waited for Amanda to answer but there was no explanation coming her way. Before any punch was thrown, Sucy and Lotte threw their things on the side and rushed over to hold her back. There were some yelling and name callings afterward but Diana turned the noises out for she looked quite surprised to see Akko's emotional outburst.

"Akko," Diana started. "Stop it; I'm fine it was a misunderstanding."

Amanda, who was also shocked to see Akko's blind fury, seemed powerless against her hold. The American girl's protest was futile as her arms swung helplessly like blind crab's and Diana started to fear for her.

"Akko, please," Diana said again, "just leave it. I beg you."

The Japanese girl took a deep breath to ease her anger. But soon her face turned towards Diana with concern. She shoved away from her friend's grips and sped towards her. "Oh Diana…" she breathed, wanting to touch her jaw but she couldn't. She knew touching them would hurt.

Diana inhaled the scent of her as Akko was inches away. Feeling lightheaded, she couldn't contain Akko's intense stare so she tried to focus her gaze anywhere near her face. She tried staring at her lips and involuntarily licked her own. She instantly placed the cold compress on Akko's face to push her away from her a little.

Akko squealed at the ice cold contact.

"Girls, please. No more violence!" Professor Ursula helped Amanda up the bed and stared disapprovingly at Akko.

The Japanese girl slowly saw what she had done when the anger subsided. Now her face got hot as the guilt settled in her stomach. "Oh my god! I'm so sorry Amanda. I just—it's!"

"Aww Akko," Amanda dangled her left leg on the edge of the bed. There were some scrapes on her cheek and knees. "Don't worry about it. You don't have to cry."

Jasminka helped Professor Ursula prepare the cotton, some medicine, and bandages to fix Amanda's scratches.

"I didn't know you could body slam!" Amanda grinned, excitedly. "That was so cool!" But her excitement diminished when she winced at the contact on medicine on her cheek.

Despite Amanda's constant reminder, Akko still held herself responsible for overreacting and making matters worse as she began to hug the redhead. Diana couldn't help but feel a twinge of jealousy at the sight of that.

Amanda patted the shorter girl's back as she laughed at the crying girl. When they pulled away, Akko wiped the tears from her cheeks with her sleeves.

"Akko, tell us the truth." Professor Ursula pushed back her glasses up the bridge of her nose. "Where were you this whole morning?"

"Eh?" Akko looked back at Diana for answers but even she was clueless about the whole thing. "I didn't steal anything from the kitchens this time, I swear!"

An awkward silence permeated the air. Alcor was the only one cawing like he was chuckling.

Sucy snickered. "You just admitted you do that every week."

Akko blushed at the exposed secret.

"Akko!" Amanda grabbed her forcefully by the shoulders. "Did Diana do something to you?"

Diana twitched at the term used while Akko got too embarrassed at the question. "Wha—we didn't do anything wrong!"

"We can't help to think you've done something wrong. You're so defensive." Sucy commented. She averted her gaze towards Jasminka and Constanze. "What's going on?"

"Amanda and her team claimed that they saw me—" Diana turned away, a rise of pink powdered on her cheeks. "—sexually harass Akko."

"You were crying!" Amanda held Akko's shoulders tightly. "You clearly were upset!"

Akko's eyes bulged out of her sockets. "T-that's not true. That didn't happen at all! We only kissed! I didn't cry!"

The girls definitely had their jaws dropped as they zoned out of it for a while in shock.

"Kiss and tell much?" Sucy said.

"Oh dear," Lotte held her cheek, processing everything in.

"We kissed days ago! She didn't—" Akko tried to salvage the embarrassment.

"Akko!" Professor Ursula said. "Did you say days ago?"

"Uh yeah?"

"It didn't happen just this morning?"

"Uh… no?" Akko said. "I invited Diana to go with us to town this morning but she refused."

"Akko, are you lying?"

"I'm not!"

"Something's definitely happening here." Professor Ursula placed her finger under her chin, thinking. "All of you seem to be telling the truth. This must be a cause of illusionary magic."

"—or maybe, the great Diana Cavendish casted a forgetful spell on Akko." Amanda provided, crossing her arms while looking at her, still suspicious.

"Or—" Diana began, her voice loud and clear. "The trickster decided to upgrade her pranks by making people see things."

"What like an enchantress?" Lotte provided.

"Or maybe a Tikbalang." Sucy said.

Everyone stared at her confused as if the awkwardness that started hanging out with them seemed to raise its ugly head out of nowhere. "Oh wait, there are no tikbalangs here," Sucy said in a monotone.

"What are tikbalangs, Sucy?" Akko asked, interested.

"Crazy reversed centaurs who love to trick innocent travelers in the woods."

Diana recalled reading the name of a monster creature in Hiyas Manbavaran's curse journal. She knew she had to find out who this trickster is before things will get worst and she will start tonight.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **This chapter was written before episode 22 came out. The story so far is in compliance with episode 20, so I'd like to say sorry for the inconsistency with the canon material.**


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

Diana never knew that last week's occurrences would lead to this. It was afternoon and classes were finished for the day, Diana could've been reading in her room, making her homework, doing advance study or in this case, help clear her name as she finds out the identity of the prankster who tricked Amanda and the rest of her team into thinking she had her way with Akko.

Professor Ursula let Amanda off with a warning and a month detention. Meanwhile, Diana managed to halt the gossiping of last week's assault before it could get worse and reach the other Professors. Diana knew she saw the trickster a week ago. She didn't see their face but she knew it was the trickster who was running away from Amanda and her team.

"Diana!" Akko came to her with a tray and poured her cup with more tea. "I told you to tell me when your cup is empty!"

Diana controlled herself for wanting to curse that her Nursemaid Anna required Akko to wear a maid's outfit as it was customary for anyone who serves the Cavendish family to wear the proper Uniforms. She also debated to herself whether it was a good idea to have accepted Akko to work for her. Akko's contract for her was to be her maid for four weeks.

The Japanese girl resumed her cleaning. Truth be told, Diana was surprised that Akko could clean without messing up, but maybe it's because of the fact she's been given a lot of detention and cleaning punishments that she knew how to do it properly and neatly.

Akko also had been too engulfed with how to properly brew tea the English and Japanese way that Diana was surprised when she tasted the first cup Akko gave her. It had been delicious, given the fact that Akko added honey instead of sugar cubes. Diana once watched Akko make the famous Japanese Matcha tea for her.

Akko by far became too focused on the tea brewing yet the fact that she can't focus on class is beyond Diana's comprehension.

Telling Hannah and Barbara what happened last Sunday had been proven to be quite difficult. While the girls had managed not to receive the news faintheartedly, Diana wanted zero people knowing about this arrangement. She didn't want Amanda at her throat for something like this.

Reading over the paragraph of the illusion magic book once more, Diana couldn't find a proper spell that the other students of Luna Nova could have achieved to conduct a great spell to have fooled Amanda and her team to think it was her and Akko doing such things. It's not that she doesn't trust her other schoolmates to have successfully casted a higher form of magic like this, but it was due to the fact that it might not have been a student after all. What if, the trickster was a staff or a Professor all along?

Diana is losing her head.

When Akko filled her cup, she resumed cleaning up the room. Diana hadn't been able to make her room spotless or asked the sprites to clean up. She doesn't really need a maid here at Luna Nova, but she wanted to help Akko with her money problem. She wanted to lend Akko some money but the Japanese girl's conscience couldn't rest.

Diana's cheeks were burning hot; the heat stirring inside grew as she continued to watch Akko with silent eyes. She tried tearing her gaze away from her but couldn't. Akko's small frame, petite waist, and chest gripped her in a binding spell.

Then the smaller girl lifted her head and her red eyes entwined with Diana's. Akko sensed Diana looking at her and blushed. A jolt raged through Diana's bones, she had to grip the edge of her table for support. Her heart beat all the way up to her throat.

"Am I being a bother?" Akko asked.

"No!" Diana said all too quickly. "I mean. You're not being a nuisance, Akko. I… I'm just thinking."

With that said Akko finished the dusting the bookshelves and removed her full bun and stretched her back. "I'm finished cleaning up."

Indeed, Diana was surprised Akko was capable of such feats. Diana once had to remind Akko to eat lunch because she forgot. But once she did have her fill, her stomach still grumbled. So in the end, Diana shared her some of her bought snacks.

"Do you want me to do something else?"

Diana had to look away again and tried to focus on the book in front of her. "No, you're relieved of maid duties for today."

"Okay, see you tomorrow, Diana," Akko said and ran towards the changing room. She didn't know they were being eavesdropped on when she bumped on Hannah and Barbara on the other side of the bookshelf. "Oof!"

Hannah and Barbara jumped in fright at being caught.

"Akko!" Diana fled to the scene when she heard loud thuds on the floor and saw Hannah and Barbara on the floor.

"Ummm… it's not what you think it is!" Hannah stammered.

"Yeah, we were just—" Barbara aristocratically placed a hand over her mouth, thinking her little fiber was convincing. "Just trying to talk to the bookshelf's spirit! My singing's still not as good, you see."

Diana wanted to raise an eyebrow but decided against it.

"Hey Diana—" Akko said. "Can I help you while looking for this trickster?"

"What?"

Akko leaned closer to her. "I know you like working alone, but Diana, the trickster also used me. Amanda thought she saw me with you. The trickster could've been using us for weeks and we didn't know!"

Diana looked into her bright red eyes, slightly taken aback by their sincerity and drive. She could see bliss wavering in them; at some point, even selfishness, idly poised by the resolve not to break eye contact.

"I suppose you could offer me a new perspective. One which I might have overlooked."

"All right then!" Akko grabbed her hands again and placed it close to her heart. Diana found Akko's hands warm and soft. "I'll come back here after dinner okay? Of course, expect me not wearing this maid uniform."

Diana chose to ignore Hannah's and Barbara's shocked faces behind Akko and focus on the possible thought of spending more quality time with Akko and to get to know the girl better than before.

"Head over here after you've finished having dinner and your magic linguistics homework."

"Yay!" Akko jumped in glee.

* * *

" _ **Akko, has**_ your girlfriend found anything yet about the identity of the trickster?" Sucy stabbed her meat with a fork.

"Sucy! She's not my girlfriend yet! And no, she was still having trouble." Akko said her mouth full. She wouldn't stop gobbling her food up. "Also I know she's having a hard time since the trickster seemed to be cautious with her pranks."

"Well, she did get almost caught," Lotte said but stared worriedly at the brunette. "Slow down, Akko, you might choke. Diana will still be in her room."

What her friend feared came true. Akko's air passage got blocked. An involuntary cough began to surface as she grabbed her glass of water and drank it all in three big gulps. Akko finally was free of choking and it was a good feeling.

Sucy chuckled. "You're just upset; you haven't gone on another date with her."

Akko glared at the grayish complexion Filipino friend of hers and said. "That's why I asked her to let me help her."

"I feel like instead of helping her, you're distracting her with your clumsiness," Sucy said frankly and chewed a bite before continuing. "It's beyond me when she accepted you to work for her. I knew I gave you the idea, but I didn't know you would really get it."

"Well, I feel like you're looking down on me, Sucy!" Akko pointed her spoon to Sucy. "Have a little faith in me."

"Akko," she pushed the spoon away. "In case you don't know, living with you is me already having a little faith in you."

"Ouch!" Akko cried. "Your words really hurt me!"

Sucy stared at her as if she was thinking of all the possible ways to torture her and practice the spells and brew the potions that were written on the curse journal her ancestor wrote. But then she asked. "Say Akko, have you ever heard of doppelgangers?"

"I've heard of Ikiryōs back at home. I read it from a fiction picture book when I was a kid."

"Sucy, doppelgangers are a product of fairytale stories," Lotte said.

Akko pouted. "It's really weird to know that even for magic and witches; there are things that are fiction."

"There's a Finnish folklore, my mother used to tell me about Etiäinen. It sounds a lot like a doppelganger but it's not because Etiäinen is like feelings that something is going to happen."

"So like the French's Deja-vu?" Akko scrunched up her nose.

"No, I meant like shadows of a person doing something before the person himself is going to do it."

"You mean to say like a person's shadow got there first?" Sucy asked.

"Yes."

"We just call doppelgangers a result of an evil magic spell casted by the Aswangs," Sucy said, not adding that the Manvabarans hailed from Aswangs. "There are many varieties of doppelgangers magic but the ones common are typically harmless because they are the embodiment of the inner desires of the original. These spirits can never appear in the same place as their original. But once you learn that the person with you is a doppelganger, you better run."

Akko gulped, feeling the lump in her throat go down slowly. "Why?"

"Let's say if you knowingly talked to a doppelganger, the doppelganger face distorts back into a demon.

It lasted only a minute, but Akko's and Lotte's face had turned chalk white. Akko squints her eyes, suspiciously. "Are we still talking about fiction stories or—?"

Sucy shrugged.

* * *

 _ **Diana decided to**_ skip dinner as she glossed over her homework and research. Hannah and Barbara went to the dining hall without her after an elaborate excuse she made to let them go on without her. But her teammates insisted that they will bring her some sandwich as soon as they get back.

A part of Diana wished she has had declined Akko's offer to work for her where she could bury herself in contumelious amounts of paperwork, without seeing Akko for a whole time because the smaller girl would spend her time in the company of her friends. And then, she would feel more like herself again, she would cease her queries about whether she had changed so little in just one night, back before she started having feelings for her.

Though it's undeniable that she loved it when Akko touches her when Akko looks at her when Akko shouts her name and especially when Akko stands near her, breathing in her scent, wanting to bury herself in Akko's embrace.

The way the Japanese girl held Diana in worry, careful of her injury, yet the heavy weight of worry beyond those big dazzling red eyes of hers. While the memory of his hand printed on hers would no longer make her feel so weak and ignorant.

Diana was so sure that Atsuko Kagari doesn't like her at all because of her extreme confidence that might come out as arrogance. For she did see the Japanese girl once as a simple lowly witch who doesn't deeply understand the true significance of magic no matter how many times she tried herself to be better than Diana.

She couldn't count how many times she criticized Akko. There were times it came out harshly but ever since the fact that Akko managed to bring her back to Luna Nova, their relationship has improved. Now Diana has realized that the improvement went past friendship.

Now, Diana can't help it but admire Akko's passion and great determination. And she can't also help the fact that there was more she admired about her. Along with positive thoughts, negative ones flooded her mind as well. Negativity ranged inquiries ones from simple to complex hardships bridled her.

 _What if Akko leaves her halfway?_

Nevertheless, Diana reckoned that she shouldn't bother her heart and mind with "what if", and instead of pursuing the line of cogitation that Akko's attitude would always manage to knit around her mind, like a spider's web. Whether she likes it or not, Akko is pretty much part of her life now, she couldn't afford to lose her now.

This was bizarre. Diana couldn't remember anybody ever having had this kind of an effect on her. They'd both been too young for any kind of romantic attraction. She'd feel some regret if she lost Akko. But this... this was like nothing Diana had ever felt before. Akko held power over her. The force was invisible but tremendously strong. Her insecurity stemmed from the fact that Diana has a slight fear of intimacy, which is why she distanced herself from the rest of her family, her friends, and even her classmates upon entering the Academy. As she lost both her parents during her tender years of childhood, Diana had a fear of losing people she loved.

Diana noticed the time. In about another hour, Akko will be done doing her homework and head here after. She reached for her tea and but found it empty. She reached for the teapot and stood to make another.

As soon as she went next to the bookcase, she got a full view of her teammates. She expected she was the only one inside the room but she was taken aback at seeing she wasn't the only one inside as she thought so.

Hannah and Barbara were kissing passionately. They both were sitting up, wrapping in each other's arms lovingly. Diana swiftly noticed Hannah's hands were roaming around Barbara's smooth back and down her waist.

Diana became speechless but knew when to take a step back behind her bookshelf. Judging by the intensity and genuinely, Diana knew what she saw wasn't an illusion and the image of her childhood friends lip locking remained fresh in her memory.

Face burning hot; it took the girls a couple of minutes to notice that Diana wasn't behind the bookshelves anymore, causing the girls to scream more than Diana ever heard them did.


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

"Diana!" Akko stormed through the blue team's door clad in a white plain t-shirt and red shorts.

Hannah and Barbara bumped to each other flabbergasted. Akko saw Diana amble towards the commotion from her reading space then ran towards her full speed.

"Akk—"

Throwing herself to the taller girl, she clutched for her, a few tears escaping her lidded eyes. Pushing Diana to a stop, and caused her to lose her footing. The gravity took its course, and they both fell.

Sprawled on the floor, Diana pushed her upper body upright. Akko remained her hands tightly wound around her hips. "What's the matter?"

"Sorry, it's just that Sucy has been telling me ghosts and ghouls stories since dinner!" Akko squeaked, cuddling on the taller girl to get energy like a recharged battery. "She implied that one might follow me here!"

Diana stifled a laugh then patted the girl on the head. She stood up, smoothening out the creases in her uniform and helped the shorter girl up to her feet. "You're a witch, Akko. You should be the one instilling fear instead."

Akko grinned while being hoisted up. "You're right, Diana!"

The taller girl led the way back to her bedroom space when suddenly swayed to the side. She put her hand on the bookshelf wall for support.

"Diana, are you okay?" Akko held her, asking with a flicker of worry in her eyes. "Did you hit your head?"

"I'm fine, Akko. I merely witnessed a shocking fact that's all."

Behind them, Akko heard Hannah and Barbara giving panicky laughter to try to lessen the awkwardness through the air but Akko ignored them. "We should get started then!"

Diana suggested that they should borrow more books from the library and return the ones she finished reading. So Akko accompanied her, in her pajamas and returned back to the suite carrying a bunch. Akko noticed that Diana borrowed ones that seemed heavy on tradition and old magic that dates back to the Nine Olde Witches. Akko, on the other hand, borrowed books about magical beasts and artifacts.

When they got back to the dorm room, Akko looked around while Diana changed into her night robes. She noticed the tulip she gave the blonde on their not-so-official date at the library. It was still alive and well on the jar as it was the first time she gave it to Diana.

Diana might have casted a Revitalization Magic on it every day.

When Diana finished her trip to her changing room, she saw Akko staring at the tulip she gave her.

"You still have it?" Akko asked.

"I've grown fond of it. A simple Plant Restoration Spell can make it live longer, again and again." She walked across the room and passed behind the shorter girl. "Let's start, shall we?"

As Diana settled on her desk, Akko snatched one of the nearest books and began skimming it on the cozy spot on the floor. One book was about the history, origins and other general information about magical beings, and also another was all about the folkloric tales and legends of various cultures and places. Only a few pages mentioned about doppelgangers. And of course, they were exactly what Lotte and Sucy had told her. She slammed the book shut before the images will haunt her sleep.

Needless to say, these were all nonsense myths! She picked up the last one which seemed more promising than the rest and read. When she got bored, she wished she had some comic books with her. She could tell Diana about fictional wizards and witches but perhaps, Diana wouldn't be too fond of Doctor Strange and Scarlet Witch.

"Akko!"

"Uwaah?" she yelped, looked up from her book and turned her attention towards the British girl.

Did Diana catch her daydreaming?

"Akko," Diana stared at her with keen interest. "Are you comfortable reading there?"

"What?" Akko asked, glancing again at the carpeted floor she decided to sit and sprawled the books at. "Umm, I'm okay here."

Diana arched an eyebrow, observing the Japanese girl's state. "Akko, please take my bed."

She finally agreed as Diana insisted. Transferring the stack of books on the mattress, Akko hopped onto it. Diana's bed was softer than hers, maybe because it comes with being a Cavendish. Akko's face flushed when her nose whiffed a strong scent that loved coming from the blanket and the pillows. Akko was so tempted to sprawl in the bed and sleep in it, basking in Diana's smell, but knew she shouldn't because she promised to research with Diana.

They were on their quest browsing through dusty old books, but still no sight of the clue about of their dilemma. Instead, Akko found a few books about Polynesian and Malay mythologies, which she guessed were among the ones Sucy continued on telling her about. She just wanted to distract herself from all the madness, so she started skimming through them.

She asked Diana, who was now leaning her back on the shelf; perhaps she was stretching her body for proper posture to ease her strained muscles from sitting a long time while reading a black leather covered book.

Akko started to flip books pages and reached for her wand and began waving it in the air to help her fumble about. In her frustration, she placed the finished books back on the bed to make it spacious again.

When Akko got too tired because of the amount of reading she had done for the night, she yawned. She hadn't expected that Diana would yawn too, minutes after she did.

"Who do you think the trickster is, Diana?" Akko queried. "Does reading really help?"

Diana closed the book she was reading shut and sat next to Akko on the bed but her legs dangled over the edge. Her blonde hair fell over her face as it swayed against the motion. A tiny smile curved on her pink lips. "I've been doing a lot of observing too—on the students, the professors and on the sprites. I made a mistake before, Akko. I made an assumption and thought I was correct. If it hadn't been for you, I would have exterminated all the Pappiliodya's chrysalids. This time I want to be certain. I want to act when I'm absolutely certain. The trickster could be anyone, Akko—someone who has reached a higher tier of illusion magic."

Akko laid a hand on top of the taller girl beside her. "Diana, what if it isn't a product of illusionary magic? That could mean we've been looking at it at the wrong angle!"

Her smile grew wider. "Then that means we exhaust every possibility there is. I'm fortunate to have you."

Akko's body trembled at the words, her nerve ends went prickling under Diana's meaningful stare. Diana laced their fingers together. The act startled the Japanese girl and melted her at the same time. Before she knew it, their faces drew in towards each other, but when their lips almost touched, Diana paused, stopping them both.

She coughed a little, composing herself but she was still flushed before noting. "Akko, I noticed you can be quiet when studying. You were completely absorbed while reading. I surely thought you would have been bored and start being noisy or feel asleep as you do in class."

"Is it really a shock to know I can concentrate if I can?" she pouted.

"Forgive me if I phrased it wrongly, what I meant to say is that I'm seeing new things of you that I haven't been used to. The more I learn about you, the more I want to know you. Like how you really fancy folkloristics, storiologies, and mythologies." Diana pointed out.

"What—oh!" Akko smiled guiltily, showing her toothy grin. "Chariot does love to entertain people by shape shifting. Plus, Sucy's been telling me about her local myths as well as Lotte's! So maybe I figured, the trickster is not a student but maybe a—"

"Magical beasts are safely locked in the dungeon, Akko and we witches can control them. Even if the trickster is any magical beasts that can shape shift or enchant, they first have to pass through the wards of the school and we will be alerted of their arrival."

"You're really smart and informed, Diana." Akko dropped her eyes to her hands resting limply on her lap then looked up back to her. "I really want to be with you for as long as you'd let me!"

"Likewise," softly, gentle fingers brushed her long straight brown hair back behind her ear and stroked her cheek. Diana tipped Akko's chin up and turned her face back to her. She leaned over until their foreheads were inches apart. Her bright blue enigmatic eyes gazed into hers.

Akko's heartbeat sent her pulse humming through her veins as she stared at the taller girl. Diana was so pretty and something about the night made her skin glow and eyes sparkle.

Diana looked miserable for a moment then tilted her head and placed her face at the curve of Akko's neck.

"Diana, I..." Akko tried to say something but trailed off. She listened to Diana's breathing and felt the tickle of her soft blonde hair. Gingerly, Akko put her arms around her. "I've wanted to tell you something... umm I like you a lot, Diana!" she finally admitted out loud. She didn't care if Diana's teammates will hear, she didn't care how nervous she was nor how beet red her face is. All she cares about was this moment shared between them.

With deliberate gentleness, Diana slid her hands down to Akko's sides and enveloped her waist. Nose drifting over the Japanese girl's neck, skimming across her collarbone, Akko shivered from both the sensation and the cold breeze brought inside by the opened window, but strangely, it was soon replaced by the warmth. Diana let out a heavy exhale when she came to rest her head on Akko's chest, listening to her heart.

"I don't know how to feel about all this yet," Diana whispered. "But all I know is I miss our meetings as soon as they end. You mean something to me that I can't define. It makes me crave you—your voice, your hands, and your lips. There's not a single part of you that is not worth missing, Akko. It leaves me sleepless at night. You can't imagine how hard it is for me to dismiss my feelings any longer. I want you—I don't care if I'm a Cavendish anymore, as long as I have you."

"Can I kiss you, Diana?" Akko asked, this time. She had made sure that this time it was consensual between the two of them. "Please, can I kiss you?"

Diana replied with a shy nod. Just like that, Akko leaned towards her and merged their lips together. Diana kissed her and hugged her back tightly. Her hands rubbed over Akko's back. Then she pulled Akko with her, and they both fell onto the bed softly. Diana just lay there looking up at Akko's face. The craving that had been caged inside like a bird for a while now was wilder and stronger, it made Akko dizzy.

It made Akko want more.

She tugged on the blonde hair in her grasp, exposing the pale stretch of soft skin at Diana's neck. Dragging her mouth down to a rapidly fluttering pulse point, she pressed her tongue flat against it, feeling it race with all the pent up desire churning in Diana. Akko aimed on the collarbone and sucked, gently, before soothing it with a kiss, continuing to trail a path upwards along the blonde's jaw to her ear. Running her fingertips lightly across her the taller girl's stomach, she felt the muscles jumping underneath as she nibbled gently on her earlobe.

She could feel Diana's hot breath on her cheek as the taller girl panted, making tiny sounds of pleasure that drove Akko wild. She was taken by surprise when Diana, with a strength fuelled primarily by pure want, threw herself against Akko hard enough that they stumbled and changed positions.

Diana stared intensely at her. Akko figured she might be in trouble in taking things far too advance. Although she silently wished that Diana would just kiss her again and they would cuddle all night.

But then Diana brought Akko's hand to her lips and kissed it softly. Akko watched Diana's perfectly sculpted mouth pursed over her skin before releasing her again. The cold tingling sensation was pleasant where her Diana's lips touched.

"Goodnight, Akko," she said.

It took Akko a while to recover. She got carried away and her cheeks flushed guiltily. Then she tore her eyes away from looking at the finest curves of her lips and those brilliantly piercing blue eyes.

"Goodnight, Diana," she replied softly.

* * *

" _ **Diana? Akko?"**_ Professor Ursula looked through the peephole. Despite the fact that it's two in the morning, her students were uniformly clad. She opened the door and let them in. "How may I help you two? It's really a surprised pleasant sight to see you girls get along." She pointed at her spare chairs "Please have a seat. Do you want some water or tea?"

"No need, professor." Akko said, with a devilish grin. "We're only here for a while."

The French witch stared at her. There was awfully off in her speech pattern, but perhaps it has something to do with researching with Diana that she managed to copy Diana's formal tone.

Diana slightly glared at Akko before she fully addressed the professor. "I seem to recall that you were given the task to seal all the magical artifacts used in the Samhain festival?"

Professor Ursula could've sworn she saw Diana's eyes sparkle. With a huge laugh to ease the tension of the question, she sighed after. "Yes, I was. Being the young one on your workplace has some minor setbacks. What about it?"

"We just want to know what sort of fairy powder was used in cleaning the mirrors." Diana said with a smile.

"The standard one we have, why?"

"Nothing, we just figured that a student got a hold of this fairy powder and used it on a potion."

She sighed, thinking the girls got overdosed with coffee. "I'm glad you two are getting along as you search for the trickster but I recommend you girls tone it down for a bit. It's late at night, and please don't make it a habit of sleeping too late. Look at you, you're sleep deprived."

"Of course," Akko said, with an air of regality. "Sorry for disturbing you so late professor."

Professor Ursula watched as they leave and noticed something missing in their belts. "You girls should bring your wands with you wherever you go, okay? Don't make leaving them a habit."

With a nod, the French professor closed the door and went back to sleep.

* * *

 _ **They went down**_ the steps, careful to stay out of sight of any possible watchful eyes. Hand in hand, Diana and Atsuko walked the dark hallways with their adjusted sight on the dark.

"Chariot noticed we don't have wands." Atsuko told her. "This world is very guarded with their feelings, secretive with her knowledge but they are not at all idiots."

"I told you to tone down your formal speech." Diana said, looping her hands around the smaller girl's arms. "The Akko of this world would never speak like that."

"I'm sorry," Atsuko leaned on her, with a puppyish smile; she looked upwards Diana's lidded eyes. "Please don't be mad at me."

"I'm not mad at you." Diana heavily sighed. "I just want you to be more careful. We overstayed our welcome here. We need to get home as soon as possible."

"Hey, it's not your fault we got caught by Amanda and her team."

"It's your fault why we've been caught in that situation anyway."

Atsuko sneered playfully. "It's fun teasing you—whether it's you and your other version."

"You surely teased the Diana of this world enough." Diana said, her eyes were shining, her lips parted in a hopeful smile.

"You're the one leading the other Akko on with kisses. I had to kiss the other Diana too for equal measure."

"I was so worried when she nearly cried on me that night. I had to send the other me a letter."

"You made me write it."

"I told you to make your penmanship more childish."

"Didn't the drawing I add at the end convince the other Diana it was her Akko?"

"It's convincing, but what really had us stunned was that this world's Akko has nearly caught us when we were returning back inside the mirror."

"It's a good thing I went in first, right?" Atsuko grinned sideway at her. "Imagine her face when she sees me in front of the mirror, she might think the mirror's playing tricks again and made her Diana become her."

Diana bit her lips from smiling as she had to train herself to deal with that tremendous amount of attractiveness she was displaying. It was still difficult though.

"I can't wait to go home. It's too dark in here."

Diana chuckled, with just the slight gleam in her eyes. "Oh, my dear Atsuko, we will get home soon."

The sky had become cloudy and gray, like poorly painted canvas, and the hallways were dark and quiet, without anyone. Yet in silence, the lovers know what each other felt. It was not one of those strong, impulsive feelings that can hit two hormonal teenagers like the electric shock when they first fall in love, but something quieter and gentler, like two tiny lights traveling in tandem through a vast darkness and drawing imperceptibly closer to each other as they go.

They leaned towards each other closer and their lips connected.


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

Still lying in her bed, Diana had long woken up. She hadn't been able to put her eyelids together all throughout the night. She lay next to the brunette, tucked beneath the blanket, where Akko's eyes couldn't possibly notice that she was wide awake and ready to head off to wherever she had planned to go that day.

Akko was frank and utterly unpredictable, yet forever charming and challenging. How could a human being encapsulate so many discrepancies and still preserve the balance that Akko never seemed to lose, no matter how the events unfolded, despite their unforeseeable character. She was the unknown quantity that threatened to blot out the entire mathematical equation in which her life had transformed.

Diana lived by certain rules, imposed by her own deliberation; rules that she could not abate from for fear that it might disrupt the natural order of her universe. She liked having a general outline that she had drawn herself, because it made her feel free, even though she knew that she was merely taking delight in a sweet obliviousness; by merely bearing the name Diana Cavendish, she could never truly be liberated.

But when she thought of Akko again, like she always seemed to be doing ever since that day when she had watched her during the matriculation ceremony. Akko and her teammates fell from a portal and when Akko realized she was there, the Japanese girl kept yelling in unfathomable high spirits, bringing about both the ignorant non-magical lineage girl that she had guessed at the sight of Akko's merry eyes.

But as the mere memory of that day pierced her thoughts again, she wondered why the Japanese transfer student intrigued her in such manner as to allow herself to occupy her mind so often with the recollection of Akko's gleeful face. Diana admitted that she liked her, more than just in a friendly way, but at the same time, the acknowledgment of this issue troubled her.

If someone would have told her a month prior to their meeting that she would gain a peculiar and intoxicant interest in a girl like Akko, she would have laughed and dismissed the person endlessly. But now that Diana had met her that she had dwelled on several enigmatic events in which she had played. Diana was hardly the girl that she had seen reflecting in the mirror weeks ago; a week seemed like a fair amount time to allow drastic changes of behavior and character, so the question lingering on the back of her mind was that if after the days and nights that had elapsed since their meeting, if Akko hadn't chased her when she ran away from her could she still be the same cold uptight Cavendish girl?

Diana caressed Akko's sleepy face as they both still lay on the bed. "Akko, wake up," she spoke calmly. "Come on Akko…"

Akko grudgingly opened her eyes. "Ugh, what time is it?"

With a slight color on her pale cheeks because of Akko's close proximity, she said. "Go shower and change. Let's meet up at the breakfast table in half an hour."

"You mean I can sit with you?" she said with a voice of dreaminess.

Diana's lips curved in a gentle smile as it reached her eyes, "If your friends wouldn't mind."

"On no, they wouldn't. But if it's okay, sit with us for dinner! Lotte and Sucy grill me for answers and I think it's best if you answer them!"

"Certainly, Akko, I'd love that."

"Yay!" The jolly girl pushed her upper body to sit and threw her hands up above her head.

Diana did so as well and stretched herself. The British girl barely got up off the bed because she was excited for the day but Akko's enthusiasm made it easier for her to get up, rather than the old inspiration of duties and responsibilities.

"Diana?" she heard Akko whispering.

"Yes," she replied with the same dreaminess playing in the tone of her voice. "Is something wrong?"

As their gazes met Akko brushed a kiss on her lips, making Diana blush even more vividly than before. Akko lifted from the bed quickly and dashed out.

Diana watched the Japanese girl curiously, hair messy but giving off such adorable and dorky aura that Diana's heart seemed to melt with every of her over-confident steps.

After a few moments, Diana sat in front of the mirror to see if her cheeks were still red. Her fingers lingered on her lips, recalling and savoring Akko's kisses. She made sure she doesn't have any bags under her eyes but noticed a bluish mark just above her collarbone of the left side.

"No, Akko..." Diana touched the spot and blushed.

* * *

" _ **And Diana will**_ eat dinner with us later?" Sucy said as they walked down the stairs that lead towards the dining hall. "Diana has gone too soft than I initially thought."

"Wow, this feels so romantic." Lotte poked Akko's cheek and giggled. "I think that's wonderful, Akko."

"I'd like to see her fangirls react with you on their table." The mushroom queen remarked, referring to Diana's teammates.

"Hannah and Barbara are always melodramatic but I think they'll manage," Akko said, spotting a familiar trail of blonde hair on the other side of the room. She couldn't stop smiling at the sight of her.

Diana noticed Akko as well and gave her a smile; Akko waved her hand in return.

"I guess, see you in class," Akko said then went off towards Diana. As soon she was within hearing distance, she noticed the missing duo and obviously looked around. "Where are Hannah and Barbara?"

Diana seemed to have recalled something when she looked upwards for a while then flustered a bit. "They were still in a state of shock from last time; they'll be here."

"They are always overly dramatic." Akko shrugged. " _Yare_ _yare_..."

"Akko," Diana stepped forward towards Akko, catching her off guard of how close she was. "You're not getting away for what you did last night."

Akko gulped she knew Diana was going to talk to her about this. She will get scolded again. She did get overboard on kissing her but when the girl you really liked was so soft and cute; it would be hard to restrain from wanting more.

Diana sighed; her hand touched the collar of her uniform. "You're fortunate that it can be hidden." She revealed something behind the cloth quickly but with enough time for Akko to register what it was.

Upon the sight of the mark where Akko had gently sucked on, a smile was brought on the shorter girl's face. "Oh, my! That's beautiful."

The blonde stared at her grimly in annoyance before a smirk took place her lips. "It can be easily charmed to be invisible or to be completely healed, but this is a mark of affection, isn't it? I want to keep it."

The shorter girl's cheeks flushed warmly. "You can't blame me if you have a cute moan."

"AKKO!" she scolded, crossing her arms across her chest. Then used the gentlest and embarrassed voice she could muster. "Not in public."

"There they are!" Akko pointed as soon as she spotted the girls walking in the area. She saw Hannah and Barbara anxiously wave at them while trying to have minimum eye contact.

The moment all of them were together at the table, Akko sat close to Diana. She hardly knew what drew her to the proud daughter of the Cavendish family, what made Akko want to seek her gaze in the morning mist as they ate breakfast. She knew that her first thoughts in the morning and the last thoughts that linger on her mind was Diana, she knew despite being clumsy and dumb most of the times and her rigid thoughts convey the fact that she loves her.

"Ahh!" Akko yelled, recalling that she has been busy these past few days.

"What seems to be the problem?" Diana asked.

"I forgot to do a monthly video call with my parents! They'll kill me if I won't contact them and they'll stop sending me stuff from back home!"

"Calm down, Akko. There's no need to be so apprehensive. I can accompany you after classes."

"You mean you want to meet my parents online?"

Diana's eyes widened at the thought then she averted her gaze away, a blush creeping up her cheeks. "I merely suggested I will be with you. Won't a proper introduction be better?"

Akko smiled as she realized that the panic had disappeared as soon as she had thought of Diana meeting her parents even just through a video call. "But I like the idea of them meeting you already. I can just reintroduce you again when you come to Japan with me one day."

Diana nodded; with a small contained smile that she will soon go to Akko's home country once more but this time to relive Akko's childhood memories and for her to properly meet her parents.

"We should call them by lunch time because back in Japan they'll be home."

"Most certainly," she said. A slight nervousness raised up from the pit of her stomach for she had never been introduced as someone's girlfriend and now that she was hours away from doing just that. Even if it was just a video call, she didn't know how to react. Should she be shy and introvert? Should she mingle with her family and chat the night away with them? Shall she be formal and show that she's perfect for their daughter?

After a brief second of contemplation, she realized that the best way of handling this new situation was by being herself. How were her family supposed to like someone that she was not? She would be the Diana Cavendish she knew—the one that Akko liked—the one that her friends had looked up to.

She would not restrain herself and surely she would not let people believe that she was someone else. She would be truthful to those around her and to herself; if Akko liked her the way she was then she saw no reason why they would not feel the same

They continue their meals in silence as the rest of the world's noises turned into buzzing. As she watched Diana eat with proper table mannerisms, Akko chewed down her breakfast like a starving child. Diana took a long sip from her cup

But in Akko's observation, she came to realize that Diana looked stiff and uncomfortable as if she's trying to avoid something. In her habitual curiousness when it comes to Diana, she glanced up to see that the girls were quiet. Hannah and Barbara weren't even conversing with the blonde.

Akko can't seem to brush off why the girls behave slightly tensed around each other. With an eyebrow arching, she asked. "What's going on with you three?"

Diana choked on her drink, frantically putting the cup down. "Well, Akko." she finally spoke tenderly, after several moments of hesitation. "If you insist in knowing—"

"DON'T TELL HER!" Hannah and Barbara shrieked as they surrounded Diana to stop her as they literally threw themselves across the table to reach her. Akko almost fell backward on her chair from avoiding them.

Diana raised her hands in surrender.

"WE HEARD YOU—" Hannah lowered her voice while she pointed a finger at them. Barbara kept nodding in agreement with her hands on her shoulder. "We heard you too you know. The bookshelves don't count as a wall."

"You learned that the hard way, I concur," Diana said with a smirk.

They both blushed profusely but they shrugged it off. "It doesn't also count as soundproof," Barbara added.

Diana raised an eyebrow and crossed her arms, as though she was telling them to prove their certain claims. "You must be hallucinating. Akko and I were just clearly researching about the trickster."

Hannah and Barbara slowly drifted their attention to Akko and under their piercing gazes, Akko lost into pressure.

"Akko," Hannah began, both hands crossed while giving Akko an intimidating look.

"Were you really just researching or there was something else done behind those shelves?" Barbara continued.

"Well um..." Akko giggled much like a school girl guilty of the crimes she committed with her lover. "Ehehehe..."

The duo had their jaw dropped for a second before screaming both in delight and of surprise. It was so sudden that the rest of the school had no reason but to stare profoundly at them.

Diana was used to all the staring, given the truth that she is a star student, because of her own achievements and the fame prearranged by her last name, but the fact that Akko had admitted to her friends that they were lip-locking in their supposed research quarters, and her friends were screaming at knowing this. With cheeks turning beet red, she now understood how to faint overdramatically.

* * *

" _ **Diana and Akko**_ looked cute together, aren't they?" Lotte said, clasping both her hands together in her chest. "I can't believe this is really happening!"

"I think I'm going to puke with all the heart eyes," Sucy remarked while they walk through the hallways to the classroom. "At least Amanda agrees with me." They had just finished their breakfast and walked away when Hannah and Barbara began screeching their lungs out

"Aww come on. Who would actually know they'd fall in love?"

Sucy shrugged. "I really don't know why it's all a big deal for you. You should've seen it coming. It's very obvious those two have gay feelings for each other."

"So you saw the potential first and you didn't tell us?"

"I told you it's obvious," Sucy repeated when she spotted someone in the corner of her eye.

She doesn't have her signature bun in her head but the mushroom queen was sure of whom it was. But somehow, Sucy had noticed the change in her. Akko looked quiet, in a more serene manner than she had ever been before as if she was holding secret thoughts or feelings.

"Lotte," Sucy threw her chin towards a figure and the bespectacled girl saw the same Japanese girl they were talking about earlier and was fairly sure they last saw at the dining hall.

Akko was without her British girlfriend and she was speeding up her path.

"B-but she was with Diana wasn't she?" As refreshing and calming as that thought might have been on a regular basis for Lotte before, now it only managed to confuse her now because Akko always glued herself to Diana.

"Let's follow her."

Lotte uneasily didn't want to but it was Akko. If she is up to something mischievous, they should find out what it was, and hear her explanation as her teammates. Her actions might be justified after all.

They followed the jolly girl towards one of the gates on the tower where they mostly keep the ancient magical artifacts of Luna Nova's oldest archives. Managing a great distance between them and her, their eyes strained to see what the brunette was fumbling about in front of a locked door. Sucy and Lotte watched her unlock it mysteriously as if she knew a spell to open the grand door.

Seeing her storm into the storage room, the duo followed Akko inside. Sucy and Lotte watched the dismal décor; in the middle was the tallest shelf that seemed to be as tall as the tower with shelves containing magical artifacts, even paintings, and tapestries and there were four high mirrors covering most of the walls.

Akko was staring at the wooden mirror that was used in the Samhain festival and she was staring at it with a face of yearning, she even placed a hand on the mirror, pushing it. "Morning everyone," she greeted, noticing her intruders.

"Akko," Lotte began. "Aren't you with Diana?"

The brunette laughed modestly which made Sucy raised an eyebrow on her visible eye. "We were a while ago. She just told me to check on something."

"Why are you looking at the mirror used in the Samhain festival?" Sucy drawled.

"Diana asked me to check in the mirror if it's properly dusted with fairy powder."

"You think the trickster is the mirror?" Sucy said her voice droopy yet laced with sass. "Like students walked in front of it and turned them and decided to have fun being you and Diana for a day like the way you did to Diana when you pretended to be her?"

Akko looked ruffled but she remained an air of elegance. "Yeah, Diana wanted me to make sure the mirror is cleaned with fairy powder to be sure that no one did become us that day."

"How awfully mean of them if that were true," Lotte said, she placed her palm on her cheek in worry.

"But fear not, Lotte!" Akko smiled widely. But it didn't reach her eyes. "The fairy powder seems to be working perfectly fine like Professor Ursula said so I guess it's uncanny that it's the mirror's fault."

Sucy and Lotte stared at her almost to the belief that there's nothing wrong and everything's fine but there was something off. They both were completely perplexed by her behavior.

"Shall we head back to class? I don't want to keep my lady waiting." Akko grinned.

"Yeah, I guess," Lotte replied, still maintaining eye contact. Uncomfortably agreeing and lead the way outside.

"Why are there so many mirrors?" Sucy asked curiously analyzing their reflection as they passed before yet another reflecting glass.

No one answered her as they continued the path back towards the classroom. They were getting really quite late so they walked briskly over upstairs, pushed the door open and emerged inside the classroom and was thankful that there was still a couple of minutes before they are deemed late when they found out that Akko was no longer behind them.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **For the next chapter, I'll write Diana meeting Akko's parents via video call. I just want to be accurate as possible. In the LWA manga, the students are provided with laptops and they can connect to the wifi in the library but in the TV series, they can use phone calls. Asides from that, Lotte uses a Crystal ball that also functions as the internet to send messages while Diana uses an owl to deliver messages. So yeah thanks for reading (^_^)**


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

As soon as Akko arrived at Diana's huge dorm room after morning class, she saw Diana scanning over a Japanese booklet while she waited with their lunch already prepared on a table. Akko was held back by Professor Badcock because after class, she brought her to the Headmistress office to get scolded on for ruining a spell.

"Akko, you look weary." Diana noticed and gestured her girlfriend over to sit beside her on the sofa. She then pointed to a pot of tea. "Come, Akko. Tea might help you invigorate yourself. Or do you prefer coffee?"

"That's my job, Diana! Let me brew your caffeine for you!" Akko bolted towards the sofa, but she slipped and fell face flat on the floor.

"Akko!" Diana stood up and kneeled next to her.

"Ehehehe, I'm fine." Akko grinned and stood up with her lover's help. "I'd love coffee." She said, sinking her rear onto the soft cushion.

"No, caffeine is out of the question for you." Diana began warming some milk chocolate on the counter using her wand to speed things up gracefully.

"Aww come on! Coffee doesn't make me frenzy, coffee helps me stay focused! It's like hot chocolate and soda for me!"

Diana handed her the hot chocolate mug but Akko took it anyway. She blew off some steam as Diana sat beside her. "Let's eat, Akko."

"FOOD!" Akko rejoiced at staring at the available ones on the coffee table.

She began gobbling her share of sweets and salads when Diana offered half of hers. With Diana's ongoing nerves, she kept drinking calming tea while scanning a Japanese booklet before being finally presented to Akko's family.

After their lunch break, Akko prepared the laptop on Diana's reading desk and connected online with a use of spirit energy while Diana put away the dirty utensils and cleaned them with a wave of her wand. Akko wished she was able to do that kind of magic easily without any disaster. She could ask Diana to tutor her.

The British girl offered that they could use her room to have the video call so when they were ready. Akko wished that she and Diana could sit on the spacious bed but the British witch opts a formal scene and background for the adults to see.

"Diana, I'll call them now, okay?" Akko pressed the button as soon as the taller girl nodded.

Diana lingered in the background and stand before Akko could formally introduce her. Crossing her arms and shifting her weight to her left foot, she put on a casually elegant stature as she saw the laptop's screen state that the other line was answered.

" _Konbawa Otosan, Okasan!"_ Akko greeted her parents as soon as they showed up on the screen.

Diana expected a more formal Japanese interior house design but she forgot that Akko wasn't raised in a traditional home. She saw a couple in the drawing room, probably in front of a big computer.

Her parents smiled at the sight of their daughter. Diana's jaw slightly dropped on how much Akko resembled her mother. Everything in Akko was like her: her smile, her long chocolate brown hair and definitely those large red eyes, but her hair was shorter as it reached only past her shoulders and she sports full bangs. Meanwhile, her father has an average Japanese build and short brown hair and brown eyes, with a calm face and broad grin. He was quite handsome and he surely would be popular during his youth. Diana instantly knew that Akko inherited the cheerfulness from him.

The Japanese couple was glad to see their daughter. One minute into the call, Diana could easily understand now, why Akko had been so spoiled; she had been the only child to be born in the family, surrounded by both loving parents that she was able to enroll at Luna Nova to follow her dreams. They kept showering her praises, excitement, and love. Diana's heart warmed when she saw Akko jump out and about and then the conversation turned into full on scolding and reminders that Akko forgot to give them a call.

"Aren't you going to introduce this beautiful young lady to us, Akko?" her mother suddenly said, minutes within their conversation.

The shorter girl realized she had forgotten about the whole introduction thing due to her overexcitement in telling the past whole weeks to her parents. But when she was about to speak up, Diana cleared her throat and started with a bright smile.

As soon as she the focus was on her, Diana's breath hitched in her lungs but maintained a regal posture as she ambled closer in front of the webcam. "My apologies, madam," she said cordially. "I should have introduced myself earlier. My name is Diana. I thank you for accepting to meet me even though it is due to these circumstances. It's a great pleasure to meet you."

The tone she used was surprisingly tender and enthralling. Even Akko's mother, who was critical of people, was now blinking under Diana's perfect girl allure. But the father didn't look too comfortable about that, he looked pensive and wary. Akko noticed her parents didn't catch all Diana said so she translated it to Japanese.

"She's different from the friends you told us about." His face seemed guarded and even suspicious as if he knows something. He tried his best to speak in English.

"We recently became friends, _Otosan_. She's the one I told you about before."

"What a lovely name, _Daiana._ " Akko's older image said, smiling back. "She has the same name as that girl you told us that you hated so much."

Mr. Kagari touched his chin. "Could she be the rival who you can't shut up about? The famed _Daiana Kyabendisshu?_ "

Diana stared back at the Japanese girl with slight irritation that she had mentioned repulsive things to her parents about her in the first place. "So she has mentioned quite a few things about me."

Akko laughed uneasily and guiltily. The piercing stare Diana gave her was the stare she used to give her before. The one laced with annoyance—the one where Akko couldn't stop but feel irritated and the one she started to grow a crush on. She scratched her nape. " _Hai, sore wa kanojo nodesu_!"

Diana's Japanese was lackluster for she began learning the basics just hours before they called. Akko had to become their interpreter. Her parents were not so fluent in English either. Especially with Diana's RP accent that makes it hard for them to understand.

As they conversed, Diana came to know that Akko had graduated from her middle school with excellent marks in language. No wonder Akko was able to learn fish language easily even if it is one of the hardest familiar languages used in witchcraft. Akko was average in her non-magical subjects and was slightly bad at mathematical and arduous readings.

Despite her achievements and the parent's elation at the sight of them, Mr. Kagari still wished today that their daughter had not been so gifted and smart. In his fatherly egoism, he once wished his little girl hadn't been a Chariot fan so that they could keep her by their side forever. But his wife would have never forgiven him for having such malicious thoughts. So they let her go, she belongs here, to learn and become a witch at Luna Nova Witchcraft Academy.

"You should come visit us during summer, _Daiana-chan_." Mrs. Kagari said. "I'm pretty sure Akko would love to be with you and show you her home country."

"I wouldn't miss it for the world," Diana said politely and returned the smile, "Making Akko happy is an important milestone to me."

Mr. Kagari arched his eyebrow at the brutally honest remark. At the same time, he looked mildly amused by Diana's enigmatic sincerity. Akko noticed her mom and dad made a discreet look at the blonde, who fondly stared at their daughter. They immediately caught the rising colors on the blonde's face and the stares the teenagers have been giving to each other.

"Hmm... is that so?" Her father said slowly. "Are you two planning something special together?"

Akko felt a piece of cinnamon bun she had for lunch stuck in her throat and coughed a little.

"Yes," Diana said, still smiling, but her breath halted, but soon she added, "We are planning to go to travel the world together. I'll continue studying the path laid out for me while supporting Akko's dream of wanting to make everyone smile because of magic."

She grew stunned; Akko really didn't see that coming.

"Oh really Akko?" her father said, "That's good you're thinking ahead already."

Akko merely nodded back with a smile.

"Well, I know this isn't the place to talk about a family matter," Mr. Kagari began and looked at Diana again, "But we only have this time to spare. Let's cut the boring part. I have to know something to be certain about you two."

"As you please, sir."

"You seem to do a lot of good to my daughter," he said, "She's happier and a better person now than when she first got there. But as her father, I'm very protective of her. Yet I can't control every aspect of her life. I just hope that you don't mistake my trust as carelessness and do something that would disappoint us."

Mr. Kagari was hinting a fatherly message to them. Diana's eyebrow rose in surprise, he sensed something different than what they showed them.

"I understand your concern," Diana said. "I will make sure Akko is happy with me in any way humanly possible, you can have my word." Then she turned to smile at the shorter girl. Akko awkwardly smiled back.

"Such a gentlewoman," Mrs. Kagari murmured with an approving smile while her husband glared at his daughter's lover.

Mr. Kagari was intimidating but suddenly laughed in a very fatherly manner as if he just made a Dad joke to the kids. "You kids are so tense! But seriously you must know that it's about time Akko will start crushing on girls."

His wife nodded. "We've already discovered that Akko will surely have feelings for a girl ever since her childhood years."

"W-WHAT ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?" Akko yelled as her face turned beet red.

"Seriously, Akko. Shiny Chariot this, Shiny Chariot that?" He said to prove a point.

"Eh?" Akko screamed. "Ehhhhh?" she met eyes with the blonde.

Diana stared back at her, wishing the shorter girl will blink so that she could take advantage of it and kiss her rosy lips but deep inside she knew she wouldn't do it in front of her parents.

"You're also in an all-girls school. A romance between two girls is about to happen especially when you sense your daughter is gay." Mr. Kagari said as he crossed his arms, sporting a broad grin on his face. " _Daiana_ , right? We'd love to know you formally. So be sure to visit us soon."

Akko covered her face, she could not possibly deal with the fact that her parents have known years ago that she's gay before she ever did. " _Hazukashi!"_

" _Daiana-chan_ ," Mrs. Kagari took a photo album and opened its pages. "Do you want to see _Akko-chan_ when she was little?"

" _Nani?_ "

"Oh please!" Diana looked at the photos presented to her, trying to immerse in Akko's early life with the limited time given. She focused on the little girl of about six who was sticking her tongue at Diana, "Cutie."

"NOOOOOOO!" Akko yelled as she cupped the eyes of the blonde with her palms. "Don't look!"

The adults enjoyed teasing their daughter and would possibly show more embarrassing photos of her childhood when Mrs. Kagari noted the time. They grew sad with the recognition that they had to say goodbye to their bright and beautiful hyperactive daughter, the apple of their eye. But it was only the natural state of the world, children fly away, they spread their wings and they leave behind some very proud parents. And as Diana stare upon the man and the woman who brought Akko to life, they were truly proud parents, indeed.

"We miss you so much, Akko." Akko's mother said. Hands clasped on her heart.

"You take good care of yourself there, love." her father added.

Akko had finally brushed off all the embarrassments at the fact that her girlfriend found out about her toddler and prepubescent stages. "Of course," she said enthusiastically.

"And before we end this call—" the father began and pointed at her from the screen. "I better not hear my little girl crying over you."

"Yes sir," Diana's shoulders stiffened.

Mrs. Kagari smiled and then pulled her hair again in a bun with a hearty laugh and then elbowed her husband. "Be nice."

Akko instantly turned the call off as soon as they waved goodbye. Diana looked into her eyes, trying to find the answer to a question that had troubled her ever since their meeting, but while Akko's always reflected her true heart, her own iris was just as mysterious as her sudden estranging from Shiny Chariot that she had loved as a child.

"Your father doesn't seem to like me," Diana noted.

"Ehhh that's not true at all. He's just intimidated."

"Why?"

"Because you're so perfect, Diana, you could've sensed he was very disturbed that he can't match your authority." Akko shrugged. "So I guess he pulled the father card and tried to intimidate his daughter's lover. It's usually _Okasan_ who does the intimidation on other people but the fact that she was nice to you means she already likes you!"

Diana could feel the warmth enveloping her system—particularly in her heart. She was glad that she was able to make Akko's parents like her. "So, you fancied Shiny Chariot that much, Akko?" she bantered.

" _Daiana!_ "

She grinned when her Japanese girlfriend's accent was slipping.

"You're gay too! You're just better at hiding it!"

* * *

 _ **Ugh! I have no**_ time doing this! I could be with Diana right now!" Akko hated the fact that she was held for an hour detention just because she screwed up another basic spell. Diana offered to accompany her but Akko reminded her that she has duties to make.

Now she regretted why she had to be selfless for once. She hated the fact that she was thrilled and joyful hours ago when she had the video call.

"No time to be sulking!" Akko motivated herself so she would finish cleaning up the whole classroom.

Akko wiped her sweat out with her sleeve when she looked around, "Almost done, yay!" The room was spotlessly clean and all that's left for her to do was to carry the used books back to the library.

With one great huff, she carried the countless books and head towards the library. So far, she was able to carry them without falling over. She was extremely careful and would put them down to rest for a minute or two. Akko could've made two trips back to the library if she would carry fewer books but she wanted this to be over with as soon as possible.

Reaching the top of the stairs, she pushed the door open hard. Akko lost her footing and she tumbled down the entrance, all books scattered on the floor. No authority was there to scold her but some students were irked at her noise but they brushed her off.

"Good thing the librarian is on break." Akko scratched the back of her head and began to pick up all the books when and returned them to their proper shelves. She wondered where Diana was now and saw that she only had two more hours left before afternoon classes so she quickly looked at which section the last batch of books belonged to.

It was on the far edge of the library so she sauntered there, but careful to make her footfalls sound quiet as possible. She entered the row and placed a book on its spot.

"Two more books to return." She whispered to herself.

She was humming to herself when she heard a soft murmur. Akko strained her words to hear them. "...a work of fiction allowed her to create a new world in which she could conceive of any possible reality..."

Through the space gap of missing books, Akko noticed a girl's silhouette. She smiled as she recognized her. "Diana!" she ran to the other aisle and caught the British girl shutting her book as if she was caught reading something she shouldn't have but Akko's eyes were quick. She knew the book.

"Hi Akko!" she smiled uneasily, her relief turned to mild fear when the brunette spotted her, jumping up from her position on the ground, eyes narrowed, and stalking towards her. Diana took a step backward as Akko raised her arm.

"I thought you said you don't read fiction literature." Akko reminded. "Hey, that's the book where one of your ancestors wrote about. You're reading it now?"

Diana pushed a lock of her hair behind her ear and placed the book behind her. "Indeed..." she answered playfully.

"Is it any interesting than what it says on the summary?"

"I was just glancing at it, Akko," she said dreamily then gazed at the books the shorter girl had been carrying. "Need help?"

"No need, I'm almost done!" Akko placed the last two books on the shelf and her eyes cast sideways swiftly before diving into the taller girl's arms. "I'm sorry," she chuckled. "You were just, gone for so long, and I already missed you. Can I... again?" she trailed off, unwilling to finish the thought as she felt her head go dizzy and cheeks turned warmly.

Diana stared at her with wide eyes. "Akko, are you asking for a kissing session in the library?"

Running a thumb over Diana's lips, her face fell but she relished the idea of kissing her here, even though just a peck. "Sorry I— it's just that way you smelled, and the way your eyes crinkle when you smile, so seeing you here, in front of me with nobody else to see us..." she blushed, "I guess I just lost it a little."

Diana grinned down at her, "A little, huh?"

"So umm Diana..."

"Yes?"

Akko glanced around again. "About your kiss mark, can I see it again?"

"Kiss mark?" Diana stared at her in disbelief.

Akko was undeterred by her expression. "Yeah, can I see it again? I didn't have the luxury to stare at it longer a while ago." She reached for Diana's collar but somehow, the blonde stopped her with a panicky smile.

"Not now, Akko." She beamed, winking flirtatiously as she walked out of sight, the book still on her hand. "See you later at the dining hall."

"What? But we can go together!" Akko followed her but when she reached the spot where she had seen the taller girl last, she was nowhere in sight. "Diana?"

* * *

 **A/N**

 **It was revealed on Twitter by an animator that Diana can't speak Japanese fluently.**


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

"Diana, do you want to sleepover in my room this time?" Akko asked, spoon on her mouth.

Diana placed her cup back on the saucer, her other hand still holding the small book she was reading about how to speak Japanese. "I'd love to Akko, but you must ask your roommates for permission if you fancy me over."

The Japanese girl pouted and showed her puppy dog eyes to Lotte and Sucy, oblivious to the awkwardness that permeated the table area due to Akko's request.

"Akko," Lotte said, forming an articulate explanation without stating the obvious as she took a deep breath. "Think about it, where will Diana sleep? Your bed is cramped and we can't have Diana sleeping on the floor."

"Lotte's right, you know," Sucy remarked. She was sitting next to Lotte and Akko with Diana across from her on the square table. "Besides, you are lovers. Unlike in Diana's room, you have privacy."

The bespectacled girl squinted at Sucy then elbowed her on the shoulder.

"Uwaahhhhh!" Akko yelled then inched closer to Diana. "Okay then, Diana let me sleep in your bed again," she asked in a soft sweet tone that Diana couldn't resist smiling despite the annoying subject.

With a low sigh, Diana closed the book and placed it onto her lap. The whole time, Sucy and Lotte kept observing them one with concern and the other one for amusement.

"No, Akko," she said with a blush then giving Akko a stern smile. "Hannah and Barbara are not still over by it. It's unhealthy for them to keep fainting like that. Furthermore, your teammates are right Akko. I do not intend to discomfort them on your own personal space, granted that I am also feeling a bit unease with the thought of us in your limited space with your roommates just beside and above us."

"Ehhh! Oh, come on!" Akko whined as if another tantrum will let things go her way.

"We need to discuss something with you two." Sucy sipped her mushroom juice just from the table. When she crouched like that her arms seemed as if it magically disappeared.

Diana frowned at the strange gesture and at the same time, the statement hurled at her like a splash of cold water. "Am I being too bothersome?" she asked, giving Akko a sideway glance. "I could leave you three alone. After all, I do understand that I'm being too intrusive."

"No!" Lotte said at once. "That's not what Sucy meant. You're very welcome to stay and hang out with us however you like, Diana."

"I see." Diana picked up her cup of tea and focused on the possible subject. "What sort of discussions?" Despite the fact that she could only see Sucy's only visible eye, the weight of the stare pierced her through.

"Did you really ask Akko to check the wooden mirror used in the Samhain festival?" the unnaturally pale witch asked.

"Pardon?" Diana asked as her body stiffened at the serious tone in her voice. Even Akko lost focus on her dinner.

Sucy clasped her heads together, elbows propped on the table. "We followed Akko before morning class started towards an archive we didn't know existed."

"There is an archive but only the professors and those who have been proven to trustworthy of the secrets were allowed." Diana provided then turned to Akko, her facial features softened. "How did you get in there?"

"What? You tell me. I didn't even go there!" Akko raised her voice. "I was with you the whole day. The only time I wasn't was during detention. I cleaned the classroom and returned the books to the library. You knew about it, Diana. You were there with me until you disappeared."

"I was?"

"Yeah, you were reading."

Diana remained clueless at first, but she could understand what Akko was referring to when all the dots were connected. She finally had a glimpse of what was happening and Akko's theory might have been half-right after all.

And it could have been happening for so long that she couldn't pinpoint the exact time when it happened. But why?

Akko leaned closer towards the taller girl, her eyes sparkling like stars. "Diana, tell me if you liked that fictional book. If you wanted to read more of it I can recommend some manga, Marvel comics or Harry Potter!"

"Akko, I'm sorry but I can't enjoy the wonder that is Harry Potter. The story is written by a mundane woman so her views of the magical world aren't true at all. If she would have written something about the magical world, it would have been better written if she did some research."

"That's why it's fiction, Diana because it's not true!" Akko yelled in embarrassment while her teammates agree to the blonde's opinions.

"That wasn't what you thought when you first talked about scar head." Sucy chastised. "It was weird because you're talking about someone else rather than Shiny Chariot."

"Hey! You can't blame me for thinking it was a magic history when I was young. Hermione is totally the best representation for witches with no magical lineage like me." Akko took a mouthful of bites on her meal before swallowing it all in one gulp. "I thought reading books and watching witches and wizards movies would prepare me when I get here to Luna Nova!"

"Don't ever trust mail order about magical references again, Akko," Lotte said.

Akko's head bowed in shame. "I regret my actions!"

It amazed the British girl that a topic can change quite easily and would lead from one to another when it comes to socializing; she was not used to this just yet. Up until her 15th year, Diana was a lone wolf. She grew up where socializing was just being arrogant faking genuine connections, except when it comes to Hannah and Barbara. She learned that the two had a strong bond and they accepted her in. At first, Diana was even wary of them but when she found out that they truly cared about her, her relationship with her teammates deepened. And through Akko, Diana was learning how to create genuine relationships with others. But there was still something that she couldn't take of her thoughts.

"Akko, you saw me reading the Blazing World by Margaret Cavendish?" Diana asked, still unable to grasp the idea.

"Aww Diana," The Japanese girl grinned. "Don't be shy to admit you're reading fiction! Lotte and Barbara are reading Nightfall after all and they are proud of it!"

Lotte's eyes twinkled at the mention of her beloved book series. "There's been this theory that one of the fans speculated that Nightfall does exist in another plane of existence so there's a very good chance that Nightfall might not be fiction after all."

Sucy sighed. "The internet loves conspiracy theories so much that even fiction has no escape." She then stared forward into space at the seemingly innocent viewers.

Lotte was fueled with sudden adrenaline as she always does when it comes to books. "If in our world, Nightfall is fiction, in another world, Nightfall could be an autobiography! That's why we can all agree that the Nightfall universe exists!"

"You said Nightfall three times in a sentence, Lotte."

"Diana!" Akko pouted. "Don't think you've escaped me! Why don't you want to spend the night with me! You already met my parents, they approved! Was I really that naughty in bed?"

"WHAT?"

Sucy and Lotte had their jaws dropped but it was only Lotte who became discolored; however, the expression of surprise wasn't just from them but also from the table next to theirs.

"What the—" Akko stood up and slammed the table and averted her gaze behind her. "Were you eavesdropping, Amanda!"

Diana smiled to herself at the sight of Akko's cheeks gaining a scarlet complexion but as soon as she felt the same heat reaching her face, she decided that it would be better if she just didn't look at the other girls. The green team had indeed been eavesdropping behind them the whole time, Diana collected and she finally covered her face with her hands. In no time, everyone will know she and Akko are dating.

"We're caught!" Jasminka cheerily said, finishing her fourth helping and stacking it on top of her previous plates.

"You can't blame us when you talk a bit too loud, Akko." Amanda said, her arm hanging at top rail of her chair. "Besides, Hannah and Barbara caused quite a ruckus this early morning during breakfast that we can't help but doubt."

Constanze crossed her arms and nodded briskly. Stanbot stood on her shoulder and yelling with its high pitched robotic voice. "That's right! That's right!"

"Also Sucy and Lotte confirmed it," Amanda added.

"WHY?" Akko gave her teammates a disapproving look.

Diana lost control on the redness of her cheeks as she experienced another blood rush to her face. She could not handle all this embarrassment. How many stacks of embarrassment will she suffer before she lost all her cool and composure? Sooner or later, she will not be able to help herself and will just faint like Hannah and Barbara.

* * *

 ** _In the blissful silence,_** Akko rejoiced that she was able to enjoy a night stroll after a tiring day with Diana, even if it was just her accompanying Diana back to her suite after dinner.

Possibly, their silence spoke more about their feelings than a bunch of words said out of mere boredom could ever do it, but it was in the blatting silence that Diana found, more questions that she didn't have enough courage to tell. She could tell Akko her speculation, but she wouldn't want to make Akko worry from her half-baked theory and lead her to danger so she needed to find more concrete evidence before they take action.

Diana's thoughts were already filled with duties and studies; add to that the ongoing shenanigans Akko gives her and the growing list of mysterious sightings of their doppelgangers. The blonde decided that her own lead was a dead end but when she considered Akko's theory. She finally found a new path to research on. The past sightings were not the workings of an illusionist but of a doppelganger. It explains why someone was able to become them without alerting the professors that a threat or a student is using a forbidden high tier illusion magic. Not to mention the fact that they can also read their feelings and anticipate their actions like an open book.

It was still a matter of deep concernment why Diana hadn't dared to talk to Akko about her conjecture just yet. Following their dinner where more people came to know of their relationship, but surely at that point, she could hardly find something proper to tell her.

Diana should be getting more concrete evidence of the existence of their doppelgangers but instead, she was busy flirting with Akko.

She became relieved when Akko decided to break the awkward silence.

"You don't really want to sleep with me tonight, Diana?" Akko, on the other hand, couldn't really let go of the opportunity to ask what she wants.

Diana truly wanted to tell her that she wanted to hold onto Akko through the night again. She also wanted what Akko desired, but she was scared of herself—of what she might do. Granting, with the presence of Akko's roommates, she's scared she would not be able to control herself. "Please don't make it a habit, Akko. We have more years ahead of us."

 _Let's take things slow,_ the thought died on Diana's lips

Akko pouted, she was used to getting things done and make things go her way but ever since she stepped foot here in Luna Nova, she finally learned how to do some restraint but it was still hard to practice it. "Oh well, all right. If that's what you want I must really respect your choices."

When they reached towards Diana's door, Akko followed her inside. The rest of the blue team had not yet arrived and the British girl suddenly had an idea.

She hugged the Japanese booklet tight, placed a lock of her hair behind her ear and then kissed the shorter girl on the cheek. "Sleep tight, Akko."

Akko loved the feeling of Diana's moist breath and soft lips and never wanted to let go of her so she placed her hand on the small of lover's back, and watched as Diana's long black lashes casted shadow over her pretty smile, she pressed her own cheeks to hers, "You too, Diana."

Diana blushed bright pink at this tiny gesture. Her eyes widened, even more, when Akko started wrapping her arms around her waist with a sudden longing that sent a shivering chill down Diana's spine. She hoped Akko couldn't feel her body trembling against hers.

When she got back to her own down room on the other wing of the academy, Akko changed into her night clothes as slammed the door of her dorm room and then threw her tired body onto the neatly made bed. The sheets smelled good as it was newly washed. "I can't believe Diana won't let me sleep with her again!"

"You're still whining about that?" Sucy fixed the position of her potions on her shelf.

"Come on, Akko. You're quite insensitive." Lotte said as she climbed up to her bunk. "You should realize that you're rushing into things. Diana is trying to discipline you."

"When the day comes that Akko will be tactful is the day World War III happens," Sucy said, throwing the bed sheets over her body. "That's why it's such a mystery why Diana likes you that much."

"Well you know what they say, opposite attracts." Lotte dreamily sang as she removed her glasses from the bridge of her nose to space beside her.

"Is that a Nightfall reference, Lotte?" Sucy chided.

The trio prepared for bed when there was a hesitant soft knock on the door.

"I'll get it!" Akko bolted out of the bed towards the door. As soon as she swung the door open, she didn't expect such a surprise. "D-Diana?"

"Good evening," Diana greeted as their eyes met she smiled. She looked pretty, even though her hair looked a bit messy hung loosely on her shoulders. She was in her nightdress. "I hope I hadn't disturbed your slumber—but umm... can I stay here for the night?"

Akko's whole face brightened up and spread her arms sideways in excitement. "Of course you can!"

"What a shocking turn of events," Sucy commented. Lotte threw her a glance that says she should tone down her sarcasm.

"But w-what happened? You said you wouldn't. Why you are here now?"

"Well, I was trying to sleep when Hannah and Barbara decided to not let me sleep a wink."

"Huh? Why what did they do?"

At Akko's question, Diana lost her nonchalant facial expression when it turned into embarrassment from sheer guilty discovery. She cleared her throat. "Well, it matters not. They shall receive a piece of my mind when I talk things through with them."

"Eh?"

Sucy laughed while placing a palm on her cheek. "I don't know if Akko is really dense and innocent or just plain dumb."

"Well okay!" Akko began fixing her bed, glaring at the creases that were made when she had lied down a while ago. "Come in, Diana. I'm sorry for our cramped space. I know you didn't like it but I have not much to offer."

"Its fine, Akko, I'm just worried that I might be intruding." She addressed Sucy and Lotte. "But seeing that the circumstances over there back in my room were giving me most antsy, I'd rather be with Akko. I hope you don't mind my intrusion."

"Not at all, Diana," Lotte said from the top bunk with a smile and her glasses missing. "Like we said, you're always welcome to join us."

"Just no hanky-panky under the blanket, I'm just beside you after all."

"Oh my gahhh— stop it Sucy!"

* * *

 **A/N**

 **I can't believe the end is near. I hope you had fun reading the available chapters so far! I most certainly had fun writing. This chapter is to get you hyped for the next ones because we're finally at the plot!**

 **Disclaimer:**

 **The views and opinions expressed by Diana, Sucy and Lotte that Harry Potter are incorrect portrayals of the Magical World are solely their own and do not necessarily reflect the views and opinions of the fanfic writer, considering that both franchises are separately made.**


	12. Chapter 12

Chapter 12

Diana's eyes roamed around. Even though their room was cramped, the three of them had their own personal space; each had their own desks, chairs, and separate wardrobes.

She focused on Akko's side of the room. She saw a huge Shiny Chariot poster on the wall next to her bed, some of her luggage underneath, her Chariot Trading Card Holder on her desk and a bunch of disarrayed personal items like non-magical gadgets, Luna Nova text books and her so-called American comics and Japanese manga.

"Diana! Do you want to play a game with me?" Akko began rummaging through her cases.

"Ugh, go to sleep, lovers." Sucy reminded. "As much as we would love to drill you love birds some questions, I'd love to wander off to Mushroom land."

Lotte chuckled softly. "We would love to stay up and continue chatting, but Sucy's right. We should be heading to sleep." She faced her spirit familiar who was chilling on a skull lamp. "Let's sleep shall we?" The little spirit nodded and with his ability, he faded his light out to darken the room and encourage the mood of sleeping.

"Aw killjoys," Akko pouted but her mood quickly shifted. "How could you guys possibly be sleepy at 8pm?"

Sucy yawned heavily, "Maybe it's because of too much sleeping mushrooms."

She offered her hand to the taller girl. "Right, Diana? We could totally play with Chariot cards!"

Diana smirked at the loud girl. Despite how long the day was, she still had energy to spare. She remembered wishing she could collect the rest of the cards as a little girl and play them with someone. She would not know that her wish will be fulfilled come ten years later in a form of a jovial energetic girl.

"As much as I'd love to play Chariot cards with you, Akko, your teammates are already sleepy and we would not like to disturb their slumber. They would appreciate the slumber; however, if you insist we should play, wait for the proper weekend."

"But Diana!" Akko whined.

"I promise I will play Chariot Cards with you on the weekend."

"Yay! Hurry up let's go to bed!" She yawned fast. Akko's bright red eyes shone with so much love that Diana couldn't help but smile.

"Akko, you really need to start treating your wand like a cell phone." She pointed out when she saw Akko's wand on the desk while her phone was next to her pillow. The Japanese girl could have been playing games there.

Diana, as a model for Akko, brought her wand with her as she made it a habit to bring it with her everywhere she goes. When she goes to bed, the wand is either on her pockets or under the pillow.

They walked hand in hand back to the puffy white bed and sat there facing each other. Diana kept staring at her doll-like face, so lovely the way her gaze made Akko blush. Akko looked down, hiding her eyes under those black lashes. The wind blew through the windows. Silk curtains flicked, making the only noises in the room.

Then Akko looked up again and moved closer until their knees touched. Diana tried to control herself from squishing Akko's cuteness, so instead she donned a fierce look, trying to send a message to the Japanese girl that she should cease the teasing.

Akko swallowed hard before reaching her hands over to wrap around Diana's but she knew the blonde was nervous. Her hands were tensed, Akko had to grab them.

"Akko please, your roommates are still awake." Diana mouthed sharply, in a way that Sucy and Lotte couldn't comprehend.

"It's okay," Akko reassured her and pulled her into a warm cuddle under the sheets. "I won't try anything."

With a smile, Akko closed her eyes, dozing off but Diana stared deeply into the sleeping girl. Their faces were only an inch away. Akko's stomach faintly brushed against Diana's. Akko's body was so warm and soft. Diana couldn't ignore the smell of her skin, it was so overwhelming. Without realizing herself, she inhaled her sweet delicious scent and wrapped her arms around the Japanese girl, stroking her small back underneath her white shirt.

And then as Akko's eyes sparkled in the pale light of the night when she took a peek, Diana knew she loved her. Akko quickly shut her eyes because she was caught at trying to sneak a stare. She smiled at Akko's bright pink cheek, yearning to run her nose over that smooth skin, yearning to kiss her.

Diana is a girl who controlled her own emotions. To not let it show and to not let it fly away and was forced to become an adult due to wanting to uphold the legacy of the Cavendish name. Just this once, Diana wanted to disobey the rules.

Akko only wanted to look at Diana's sleeping face but when she opened her eyes, the blonde beauty was watching her at the first place so she closed her eyes and blushed when she got caught, getting dizzy by Diana's fervent stare.

Sharing intimate cuddles in a bed once more, she can't help stopping the powerful force of her own heart beat. Akko admitted that maybe she was rushing into things, for surely, nobody would prove such curiosity about someone after having only become close with her prior to that evening where she followed Diana back to Wedinburgh.

She had heard her classmates talk about love at first sight, as most of them had translated the butterflies they would feel when Andrew Hanbridge walked past them the day he and his father visited Luna Nova. Akko didn't see any resemblance between the emotions that the Hanbridge boy aroused in Avery, Mary or Blair on her own when she's near him.

What she felt for Diana was something so sudden that she wanted to know if this was love at first sight too. Akko started having butterflies for Diana when she came to know her more—the true her. She began to comprehend and learn that she starts to fall for Diana when she came to know the small innocent child that resides in sturdy walls of the cold and serious mask Diana wore every day.

This was not love at first sight, she reckoned, although not having a clue about what it meant or implied. When Diana left and Akko went after her, the events that occurred from there then on, something developed and sparked. Ever since, Akko loved to get intimate with her. She was rather intrigued by Diana as a girl she never thought of before as a potential friend or even a potential lover. Someone she could grow close to, someone who she can be with, and someone who she will stay beside to.

Diana was brave and still mysterious. Half the time, Akko couldn't read the blonde's thoughts but she was sure she loves Diana, for it was a feeling that implied so much more than just kisses and touches. It was about being able to make compromises.

Letting out a low gasp, Akko felt Diana leaned over and kissed her. For a second, Akko thought that she couldn't be able to keep a surprised gasp to herself.

"D-Diana?" Akko whimpered softly.

"Shh, they won't hear if you won't moan." she whispered back.

She nodded, feeling Diana's lips on hers once more and her right arm clutching her tighter and tighter, but at no time did she feel bruised by Diana's forcefulness; it felt good and warm and heavenly in a way she had never experienced an embrace before. Diana's right hand slid down on her neck, caressing the soft skin that felt so tempting every time she would touch it, and then allowed it to glide on her shoulder.

Akko opened her eyes and Diana instantly ceased kissing her rosy lips. She stared at the blonde with such innocence emitting from her big blue eyes that Diana could not help a dazzled grin to appear on her face. Her hands curled around his shoulders, she closed her eyes again. This time they finally slept.

* * *

 _ **Diana stared at**_ the moon with a starry shaped mark. "The moon here is incredible. In our world, she bears the form of a rabbit brewing a potion for immortality, but here it's a four-rayed star."

"You're imprinting it in your mind." Atsuko noticed, her head resting on Diana's shoulder.

"Yeah, won't you miss it too, Atsuko?" Diana grinned, enjoying that in the darkness of the night; they decided to peacefully hide at the trees outside Luna Nova. They were both sitting on a massive branch, their backs leaning on a wide tree trunk.

"There is nothing to be missed here. The Earth world has become our little prison." Atsuko sneered. "We did all of this just to retrieve a regalia."

"Yes I believe so but we had gathered enough, hadn't we?"

Atsuko buried her nose on the blonde's neck, inhaling her lover's scent. After a few minutes of moon gazing, she finally straightened her spine. "They should be asleep by now."

"Wait for another hour, and then we'll set the plan into motion."

Atsuko stood up. "Are you sure there's nothing else that could open the portal asides from plan B?"

Diana took the book she kept from her pocket and flipped on a certain page. " _When he fancied himself the happiest man of the World, he proved to be the most unfortunate; for heaven frowning at his theft, raised such a tempest, as they knew not what to do, or whither to steer their course; so that the Vessel, both by its own leightness, and the violent motion of the Wind, was carried as swift as an arrow out of a bow, towards the north-pole, and in a short time reached the Icy Sea_."

"So it's either we make heaven frown upon us or we do this summoning."

* * *

 _ **It was still dark**_ when Diana awoke from her dreams, only to notice happily that she had never left Akko's room. Diana turned around from facing the wall towards her lover. There Akko was on the bed, on her left, with the girl's eyes closed and her chest heaving cadent with every breath.

Akko was sound asleep, most probably succumbed in a dizzying state of reverie, deepened in the deadliest of silences. She could feel the brunette's hands brushing against her skin, as she moved closer to where the warmth of Diana's body effused on the sheets.

Diana noticed that Akko only snores when she's too tired. Her fingers caressing the dark brown strands that fell carelessly on Akko's forehead, and her breath mixing with hers somewhere in the joint space between their faces. She stared at her, bemused by Akko's joviality, by her brazenness and above all things by the genuine innocence mirrored in the content curling of the Japanese girl's lips that had gained ever since she had closed her eyes.

She could hear the deep breathing of Akko's teammates and the heavy snoring Akko was making at the moment. Diana made sure that Akko wasn't falling at the edge of the bed first and was about to head back to sleep when the window opened by itself without visible magic at work. In rushed the cold breeze of the night. Figuring it was just because of the wind, she readied to go back to sleep.

That is when Diana fancied she saw the room and its furniture change its positions. Though it was dark, she saw something moving around the room. First towards the front door, then at the foot of the bed, which at first she could not accurately distinguish. It continued gliding and fading like a shadow, but she soon saw that it was a silhouette of a person and it continued pacing with the lithe, sinister restlessness of a beast in a cage. Diana could not cry out, she was terrified.

Her pace was growing faster, and the room grew rapidly darker and darker, and at length so dark that she could no longer see anything of it but its red eyes. She felt it spring lightly on the bed. The broad shadow approached her, and she saw the shadow bring out a huge sharp glass, it's pointy edge shining and pointed it towards Akko.

Diana awoke with a hair-raising scream. She quickly searched for her wand beside the pillow and pointed a tip of her wand towards the dark figure, light emanating from its tip. That's when she can fully see a female figure standing at the side of the bed.

The girl was in a Luna Nova uniform, and her brown hair was down but she has a bun on her head. Her face contorted from being indifferent to surprise from an absolute shock.

Diana was petrified from the sight. A block of stone could not have been more still. But she acted quickly. "Murowa!" her spell hit Akko's doppelganger by the hand where she held the pointy instrument, successfully destroying the needle she possessed and took her off guard. "AKKO! SUCY! LOTTE! WAKE UP!" Her voice roared, trying to wake up the red team.

But they were unmoving, their sleepy snores prevalent in the air.

Akko's doppelganger stood there, aghast. If there was pain from her hand, she took no notice but it lay limply. "You were not supposed to be here, Diana." The other Akko's voice was deep, cracking from anguish and probing sadness. "You were not supposed to see me."

Diana pushed her upper body to sit, staring at the solitary figure before her. Her wand's tip never leaving the doppelganger, her throat dried at the sight. It was uncanny. The face, the hair, the style, the voice—this girl is undeniably Akko but she was not. The real Akko was next to her sleeping like a log. And that's when Diana realized that she was the only one awake despite the huge noises that was created.

She already knew it was too weird for students to sleep at eight in the evening, but she dismissed the fact because she thought they were all just plain tired from school work, But perhaps they were given sleeping draughts and Sucy knew she had too much mushroom during dinner.

Momentarily distracted, the doppelganger acted fast. She sauntered towards the open window, diving towards the ground below. Diana bolted out of bed, careful to not lean her weight on Akko and ran towards the hatch that led to her escape. She stared below and upwards but there was not a sight of her no more.

Diana's head throbbed from pain. She can't believe what she had witnessed in just five minutes. It was so bizarre that she thought she was just dreaming but when she stared at the wooden floor, she knew it wasn't a dream.

She picked up the remains of a huge broken needle on the floor. Inspecting the material, she knew it wasn't the ordinary stitching equipment. It was thick for an ordinary needle. It looked like a vial but shaped weirdly as it was long, sharp and thin with a space to hold liquid inside it.

The doppelganger Akko was absolutely pointing the needle at her real counterpart and she didn't anticipated for Diana to be there to thwart her plans—whatever it is.

"I won't let them touch Akko," she exhaled, steeling for determination.

As she stared on her beloved, she decided to let her sleep a few more and not to make her worry. Diana didn't want to leave her but she knew what she had to do to protect Akko and carefully left the bed to go back into her room to change and go back to her as quickly as possible.

* * *

" _ **Wake up."**_

Akko groaned and rolled over.

"Akko, wake up!" The voice rousing Akko out of sleep became urgent.

She opened her eyes. The room was still slightly dark and there was Diana hovering over her. With memories of her dream of being able to be good at magic fresh at the edge of her consciousness, she bolted upright.

Diana moved swiftly backward, avoiding the collision. "Akko, hurry up and prepare for the day. We will head to the library before morning class."

Akko groaned and scrubbed at her eyes. "Uwahh what time is it?"

"It's five in the morning," Diana cupped Akko's chubby cheeks and brushed their lips together for a few seconds. "I have something to do and I'd rather you come with me. I should have researched it at once when you gave me the clue but I was too reckless to believe that there's a tomorrow to do it."

Akko couldn't shake of the grin when she was greeted with a morning kiss and the fact that Diana had been on straddling her. She watched the British girl get off of bed.

"Diana..." Akko complained.

"Hurry, Akko, time is of the essence."

Akko kicked the covers off, slid off of bed and readily put on her uniform. She managed to be extra quiet as her teammates were still fast asleep. She noticed Diana was fully clothed. "What time did you wake up?"

Diana hesitated before she answered. "Just an hour ago, I went back to my room and quickly returned to you as soon as possible."

Akko's blush crept up her cheeks. "Miss me that much?"

Diana made a forlorn sigh. "I'm just afraid that you wouldn't be the same Akko I know."

Akko's eyes fluttered at that. "What do you mean?"

Diana took a lungful of air before exhaling. "I believe it's safe to say that you're right about doppelgangers."

"Already?" Akko scrunched up her nose, thinking. "Actually, I didn't want to be right, Sucy said if you knew they were your doppelganger, their faces contort into demon faces."

Diana remembered that she didn't see any monstrosity on Akko's doppelganger but definitely her aura was something else. "We might not know that."

Akko shrugged as Diana did have a point. "So, what do you feel about having doppelgangers?"

"I knew I must have sensed something disquieting about this. I did not find such activity alluring, if at all, it only increased my anxiety that something went amiss by our watchful eyes."

"You think? How did they get inside the school?"

"Seeing that we don't know what kind of creatures they are, we lack the necessary information to confront them or even think how they managed to cross our wards. The only clues we have are the wooden mirror and the book Margaret Cavendish wrote."

 _And two pieces of a broken needle that they were pointing at you,_ Diana didn't add.

Akko followed Diana outside and knew she ought to feel exhausted, but there was something about Diana's energy, the concentration and the urgency of her focus, that worked on Akko like caffeine. It woke her up with a sense of promise, as if the moments in front of her suddenly held endless possibilities.

"Why are we heading to the library? Don't you have a copy in your room?" Akko caught up and walked beside her, looping her arms around Diana's arm.

Diana held her hand tightly, the spaces between her fingers fit with Akko's. "I failed to know the importance of the book so I have no copy at my disposal, but as I recall, the library has at least five copies."

Luna Nova's star student had permission to go to the library whenever she wanted to so she took her wand and waved it with a spell. The locks turned and the door towards the room of knowledge opened. Diana used the tip of her wand as the source of their light, it glowed bright but not to the extent that it hurts the eyes, in fact the glow was gentle while providing enough brightness.

Roaming around, they first located the catalog and began searching through the bookshelves. The book was not where it's supposed to be. The space was empty.

"Maybe, the books were borrowed?" Akko offered an answer.

Diana went over towards the Librarian's desk, seeing it was early and she wasn't there yet, she took it upon herself to check the borrower's list. "It wasn't borrowed, Akko. In fact, it hasn't been for a couple of years."

When minutes turned to half an hour, the book search became a harder task than expected. Diana decided to relook every nook and cranny over while Akko did her thing. Diana was alarmed at the fact that not a single copy was spared.

"Why aren't there any copies?" Akko also came to a same solution, her palm in a shape of an 'L' in her chin, " _Ayashii_."

Diana was sure there was a copy but it seemed that all the copies in the library were missing at the moment. "The books are gone." A sense of dread passed through her consciousness like lightning, her insides starting to waver from an intuition. Telling her it's a sign of impending trouble. "They had been able to take it and disposed of it in a short amount of time."

"They knew I was telling you that I saw you reading it. They are really cautious."

Diana's train of thoughts suddenly became disoriented, her knees collapsed as she fell towards Akko.

"D-Diana?" Akko had to maintain a grip on the taller girl.

Her hands went cold and clammy and her lungs felt like it had shrunk inside her chest. "Akko we should've gone here before we went to bed."

"Calm down, Diana! You're shaking badly!" Akko brought the British girl on the floor with her as she leaned her back to the shelf. "Easy there, breathe in, breathe out!"

Diana rested her head on the shorter girl's chest to listen to the calm pumping of her heartbeat. Akko was her calm in a stormy sea. In the next event of a panic attack, she just wanted to sink her head into Akko's chest and never leave that place again.

"Why are you so afraid, Diana?" Akko asked, confused of her behavior, and then rephrased her question. "What are you afraid of?"

Akko began kissing her cheeks and lips, hoping that it would ease her anxiety. Indeed, her kisses and her calm whispers stopped the intense dread in Diana's heart.

"Thank you for snapping me out of it, Akko. I'm truly grateful. It's just that doppelgangers according to the books are nothing but mischievous and evil, sometimes a sign of impending death."

"Oh Diana, like you said. We don't know what kind of doppelgangers they are. There's a hope that they are not the bad kind. We'll figure something out, okay. But first, class. Class comes first, right?"

* * *

 **A/N**

 **So this chapter is a bit angsty and probably a little mature than it should be. Should I change the rating to T or remain it? I'm not sure what's appropriate for a K+ rating or what. Also, this chapter was supposed to be longer but it has too many pages (because many things happened) so I cut them into two chapters.**


	13. Chapter 13

Chapter 13

"Professor?" Diana calmly greeted when she noticed the French woman who was struggling to carry another mountain of books on the interior balcony.

"Oh hi, Miss Cavendish? What do I owe you the pleasure?"

"Good day, Professor. I have matters to discuss with you, pertaining to the slight misunderstanding that occurred last month?" Her attention never left Akko, who had joined up with the rest of their team. Diana continued surveying her lover, overlooking from the railings. When Diana returned her focus on the run-of-the-mill professor, she asked. "Shall I help you carry those books, professor?"

"Hohoho, there's no need to, Diana." Professor Ursula relieved her. "The matters you want to discuss, you mean the time when you and Amanda had to be brought to the infirmary?"

"Precisely, professor, it would be best to talk to you as it would be about Akko and I."

"Oh Diana," Professor Ursula was keen on observing Diana's slightly divided attention. "If you mean about your newfound relationship, you should not worry, I support the two of you and you have my blessing."

"T-that's not I meant!" Diana quickly offered, her cheeks turning a shade of pink. "However, h-how did you know?" she asked, millions of scenarios roamed around her head.

Professor Ursula chuckled, enjoying the sight before her. It was a different experience to see the prodigal witch fumble about being in love with the school's dunce.

"What am I saying?" Diana began making hand gestures and brought her hand to her face for a moment before shrugging. "Surely you must've noticed it on your own."

Professor Ursula giggled. "I knew it was going to happen. I mean, after all, you and Akko were the same as I was with—"

"Professor Croix?"

"Oh dear," Professor Ursula blushed as red as her hair. "So you've noticed as well?"

"Not until that time Akko called us the Nine New Witches. At first, I considered that I might be imagining it, but now it has been made clear to me."

"Why of course!" Professor Ursula placed her hand behind her hand, a nervous habit she has been doing since she has known her. "And I'm sure, that's not what you wanted to discuss with me?"

"Yes, you're right; umm..." she cleared her throat. "You see, what I wanted to discuss with you is the reason why Amanda attacked me—"

"Professor Ursula! There you are!" The magic linguistics professor interjected, cutting their conversation short. "We have a faculty meeting before morning class at the office right now!"

"Uh, right now?"

"Yes now. You're the only one who's not there yet. Come along now." Professor Finnelan placed her hands on her hips and spun on her heel, returning towards the headmistress' office.

"I'll be there right away, madam!" Professor Ursula tugged herself from her rooted place like a strung bow but stopped midway. "We could discuss this later, Diana. Meet me at the Astronomy tower?"

Diana knew she needed help immediately but if she could not confide with Professor Ursula right now, this means she has to ask somebody's help, "Certainly, professor."

When the redhead witch sauntered towards the meeting place, she spotted her own team approaching.

"Hannah, Barbara, I need to speak with you please," Diana said loud enough within an earshot.

Diana's teammates were taken aback, probably because they were caught in a compromising position last night by her and thought that Diana approached them to lecture the duo.

"This is not about the matters where I caught you two last night, but because I have a favor to ask of you." She threw her chin to point towards Akko's direction.

After all, she was in no position to lecture them after her thoughts traveled back on what had happened that night before Akko's doppelganger attacked, yet as expected she could hardly believe that any of that had occurred to her, out of all people. There were not enough positive words in the English vocabulary to express her elation and a deep sense of happiness that seemed to be overwhelming her heart with every beat when she and Akko kissed under the sheets in Akko's bed.

As vivid as it had seemed then, now she could just recall that despite the fact that Sucy Manbavaran warned them to do nothing, she hardly could contain herself from kissing Akko and touching her soft skin everywhere. She gave a timid smile when she remembered the barely audible squeal Akko made, which she had allowed to leave her throat, unconsciously.

All that was left in her now was the deep rooted feeling despite her actions were unfavorable, she felt that if no one would catch them in such acts, she had done a passable thing.

"Are you going to ask us for some advice?" Hannah asked when Diana became silent while watching her lover.

"No," Diana said abruptly, trying to compose herself. "I merely wanted to inquire and explain some things to you two as it would create an alarm if I spoke to many people. If you girls are willing to give me an ear, I'd ask you, girls, to never blabber it out to anybody else unless things get messy."

"You can count on us, Diana!" Hannah said.

"What's the situation?" Barbara asked. "Diana, it sounds like there's more to tell us."

"Well, there is more." Diana mused, staring at her lover as she and her teammates eat their morning meal. "But first, could we sit behind Akko's team on our classes with them?"

* * *

 _ **Waiting was an**_ agonizing experience. Diana had excellent patience but never of all years could she be able to find a time and a place for her to lose hers. She was gripping on her seat during classes, feet planted on the floor. Ready to dash out the minute something goes wrong in reality.

When class started all Akko's friends thought that Diana was so love struck that's why she had her teammates to sit behind the red team. For some reason, they all thought that that was an excuse to stare at Akko during classes, but the truth was more than that. Asides from staring, she wanted to keep an eye on the girl so she wouldn't get out of her sight. Diana has no idea how and when the attack or swaps could happen and she could not bear the idea of Akko not being the real one.

That is one of the reasons why she wanted Professor Ursula's aid—to guard Akko and to discuss her discovery. She hadn't mentioned to Hannah and Barbara about the almost attack incident last night for she has only told them to be vigilant whenever as possible because there are doppelgangers.

Diana was able to multitask. She does it to ease her jumping nerves. Listen to the professor, do the assigned reading, answer the questions, and stare at the Japanese girl in front of her. Akko found it hard to stare back at her because she had to turn around just to glance and as the classes went on, Akko decided to sleep on her desk and Diana let her. After all, it was her who woke Akko up early in the morning.

"Have lunch without me," Diana excused herself to her teammates, giving them an order through a sentence code as soon as class was dismissed. "I better not catch you hiding in the closet again, Barbara. Also, Hannah, you have clothes."

Hannah and Barbara laughed guiltily as they nodded. Even if they discussed codes with each other, their bodies tensed and their cheeks flushed, trying not to make eye contact with the girl that caught them doing stuff.

They glided towards Akko and both of them held each of the Japanese girl's hand. "Good luck on your quest!" they yelled with embarrassment and fled the scene.

" _Nani kore_?" Akko asked, flabbergasted.

"May I borrow Akko?" Diana walked into the conversation as her teammates left.

Lotte and Sucy looked at her as if she'd grown a second head, wondering why she needed their permission for her to take Akko away.

"Bye," Akko prolonged the 'e' and giddily sauntered towards Diana.

As soon as they got to their destination, without further ado, Diana asked the Librarian where the books written by Margaret Cavendish went. But all the librarian could offer her was that the copies were just there and maybe got misplaced by incompetent students, but Diana had an inkling they were hidden.

Defeated, Diana and Akko began their search again. Akko might have felt the negativity that hung on the taller girl's aura like a cloud so which is why she made a grand gesture as she spread her arms.

"Diana, I've read about this in comics, maybe our doppelgangers disguised the books?"

"What?"

Akko started waving her arms around, expressively. "Like they changed the catalogs or disguised the book with a different cover?"

Diana arched an eyebrow. "Are you even yourself right now, Akko?"

Akko's jaw unhinged that Diana thought she wasn't herself. "Diana, you've been on edge since this morning. It's me. Is it much of a surprise that I can think stuff like that?"

"The first day we met, what was it the first thing you said to me."

The shorter girl was caught off guard. Diana was testing her to know she was the genuine one, and if she's asking her that it means Diana remembered the first words she told the blonde.

Gulping, Akko racked her brains to think of the right words she told her when they first met. "Ah... it went something like 'Chusht khul mih Ackho'?" she said, her mouth full of air.

Diana blinked in disbelief, her eyes widening at Akko's antics. Although it was pure silly, she wanted to flick her finger on the girl's forehead but the brunette was too cute for her own good.

Akko scratched the back of her neck. "Ehehehehe, sorry it sounded really cool in my head at first. I said, 'Just call me, Akko' but my mouth was full of food that time so I had to swallow it first before I can properly say it."

Diana's first initial reaction at Akko's joke was to roll her eyes but she refrained. Akko was right. She did have food in her mouth when they first formally introduced themselves to each other so she merely giggled. Her hand went up to her lips to try to stifle her hearty laugh. Diana never surrendered to someone such selflessly; she had committed to Akko and that perhaps is the best choice of her life. She was still Diana Cavendish, but somewhat different than she remembered. She was happy and comprehended, which made her perceive the world in a whole new, better light.

Convinced that it was really her Akko, Diana inhaled deeply and exhaled through her mouth. "Reading too much fiction gave you this idea; I don't give you enough credit, Akko."

A smug appeared on Akko's playful face. "Oh, the great Diana Cavendish had praised me once more."

* * *

 _ **There was still**_ no progress in the library. The books were impossible. Diana had looked through thick and thin for half a day, but not even a glimpse of the book appeared.

They tried to look for a copy online as Akko suggested but there were no available copies of the books as ancient as that were not available on the internet. The only information they got was the same summary they already knew.

Akko sat on the floor reading a pile of books next to her whereas Diana was standing against the shelf flipping through pages of another manuscript.

Yet, their finding was gradually zeroing in hour upon hour. And they came into another doubt that either the answer was there or it wasn't. After Akko finished checking another book, she closed its cover and stacked it on top of the others. She got to her feet and stretched her arm over to retrieve some other books, but they were too high that she had to stand tiptoe.

Akko's fingertips could barely touch the books' spines so she decided to climb lightly on the lower shelf but when she was almost there, she lost her footing. And then she fell over to the side, knocking a row of books with her in the process. A plume of white dust was forming around the area and the bookshelf collapsed.

"Scrylla!" Diana casted before Akko hit the floor.

Akko gasped when she remained suspended in the air with the toppling bookshelves and a rain of falling books.

"Yera retoure!"

The objects were placed back to their positions properly this time so it wouldn't get knocked over easily while Akko was gently placed down on her foot, but she managed to trip herself over backward and a pair of arms scooped her up.

Diana bent herself over her. They waited for a little to make sure that the giant shelf wouldn't start collapsing again. Otherwise, it would cause a domino effect to the others in the library, and Akko could guarantee that she could get Diana to be banned from this place with her.

"Diana, are you okay? Did you get hurt?" she said, opening one eye to peek at her. Then she realized they were in a tango position. Akko was already half way to the floor.

"That should be my question," she simply replied, but still kept the shorter girl in her embrace.

"I'm sorry," Akko said.

"No need to worry yourself, Akko."

"And…" Akko couldn't control the blush on her cheeks any longer. "Would you… umm…" she gestured pathetically to Diana's hands that were still holding her.

"Oh, right," Diana breathed, helping Akko back to her feet.

They both cast a slightly nervous glance toward each other. "Wow, that was weird," Akko said, commenting on the fact that Diana never looked nervous. Akko started giggling awkwardly, brushing off the dust on her clothes.

"You have a smudge on your face," Diana said, reaching her delicate hand to the brunettes' cheek.

Akko froze, feeling Diana's thumb brush lightly over her skin. Electric sparks burst from her touch. Couldn't contain the burst of feeling anymore, Diana leaned in closer until their faces were barely apart. They both fell into silence again. Diana studied her smooth face from the side. Then she took a plunge and brought her nose to Akko's neck, inhaling her scent. Heart fluttering, Akko shivered from head to toe.

"D-Diana, we're in the library," the shorter girl tried to speak, but she sounded as if she was trying to convince herself.

"I know where we are," Diana whispered and when she turned back to her, their eyes met. They were lost in each other's gaze.

Diana narrowed her eyes to the shorter girl's lips. "Come here," she said, opening her arms to invite the Japanese girl in.

There was something about the blonde girl that pulled Akko in so she shifted over, but Diana just pulled the brunette's waist onto her, making Akko straddle on her lap. Diana stared up into her startled eyes.

"Diana..." Akko whimpered as Diana's arms wrapped around her tightly, pulling her closer against her.

Diana placed her hands on the Akko's shoulders, half-heartedly pushing herself away, but this sudden intimacy weakened both of them to the bones. And Diana thought she was strong but she wanted to be brave for this. "Don't worry, I won't do anything if you're not ready," she said, tugging a strand of hair behind her ear. "I just think we can seek some comfort from each other."

Akko bit her bottom lip slightly, trying not to blush so much. "Can I see your kiss mark?"

Diana smirked. "It's me, Akko." She showed the mark that Akko gave her two nights ago. It's still there, the bruised colored skin.

"Can I kiss you?" Diana said again, biting her lower lip and her eyes searching Akko's through her long curved lashes.

Akko couldn't resist such a face. Slowly and timidly, she nodded. Diana smiled and drew her face close. Akko leaned down to meet her halfway. And the moment their lips touched, dancing butterflies burst inside Akko's stomach, a dizzying excitement going through every vein in her body.

Their bodies pressed against each other, slightly rocking to the rhythm of their kissing tongues. Akko's moans echoed from the depth of her throat, which made Diana smile. Diana had control over her this time when Akko's breath shortened as her hands roamed around the shorter girl's back.

This felt too good to stop, yet Akko knew she had to before she lost herself. "Diana..." She tried to speak through our locking lips.

"Mmm?" she said softly. Diana didn't know whether it was just her moan or her response since she was still sucking away at her mouth.

For a moment they were captivated by each other, suddenly, Akko's eyes caught a glimpse of a golden spine of an antique-looking book. It was placed behind the other books and at the far back of the shelf. Akko had a strange feeling tugged inside her as she turned her focus on it. "D-Diana, wait," Akko tried to break away from the frenzy kisser, who was in the process of unbuttoning her shirt. "Stop..."

"But why?" she whispered back, still running her lips all over her lover.

"I think I see something," Akko said and just slipped herself out of her arms. Akko had to push her shoulders down, parting their lips soundly. She leaned back for some air, and we both were breathing hard.

Diana gave a low groan, but Akko ignored her and quickly went over to get the book. If Akko hadn't knocked over a row of books when she fell, and if Diana hadn't properly arranged the books back, Akko wouldn't have seen it.

"This one got my attention," Akko said and handed it over to Diana.

Instantly, Diana's eyes shone as she opened the cover that almost fell apart. Its pages were yellowed with crumbled edges. The cover was also frayed and the leather binding was unraveling, but it seemed to her like it was a priceless possession. Diana looked at Akko again with a smile. "Read it with me, Akko."

" _Hai!_ " Akko was about to place her chin on Diana's shoulder when they heard a tentative voice.

"Is that Atsuko Kagari?"

The pair jumped from shock, spun on their heels and found Avery and her team mates appearing from the entrance of the bookshelves corridor. Akko still couldn't tell the three apart as she's not sure who's always who so she's making a wild guess.

"Yeah, it is her," Avery confirmed.

"Umm yes?" Akko began. "What about me?"

"Professor Ursula's looking for you." The blonde one, Blair, said.

"Eh?"

"Yeah," Mary, the girl with the ponytail, supported the claim. "She needs you to go to her office with time to spare before lunch."

"Did she mention why?"

"We don't know." Blair shrugged. "She just looked like she's in a hurry to find you. She told us to tell you if we happen to see you. She's at the Astronomy tower."

"She also said to convey the message that you should go to her before afternoon class starts," Mary said.

"Why are you with Diana, eh?" Avery asked.

Diana squinted her eyes that them. So the whole school doesn't know about her relationship with Akko yet, the ones who only knew were their inner circle of friends for now.

"Ahh," Akko gave Diana a sideway glance. "I'm asking her to tutor me."

The purple team nodded, disregarding the Japanese girl's weird behavior as they were used to tuning her shenanigans out.

When the girls left, Akko faced the taller girl once more. "Shall I go?"

Diana closed the book. "Akko, I can go with you."

"There's no need for that, Diana," Akko reassured. "I'll meet you in the cafeteria, okay? I'll just be with Professor Ursula. Knowing about the doppelganger is more important. Don't forget that Diana." She winked and planted a kiss on the taller girl's cheek before sprinting out.

Diana didn't want to let go of Akko and didn't want to get separated from her. She reached towards Akko as the energetic girl bounced away. Stepping a few footsteps forward, she almost tripped, but she found her footing. She reached the center of the library and found the brunette has gone. Avery and her team were already on one of the tables as they prepare their study areas.

"I might be becoming paranoid," Diana whispered to herself and seated at a table adjacent to the purple team, preparing to read the book.

Ten minutes in, Diana's mind; however, was overwhelmed, her hunch confirmed. Her crazy suspicion almost becoming more founded with each passing moment, Diana began to skim through the pages, looking for a particular passage. Within twenty minutes, she found it, and her eyes widened in surprise.

"DIANA!" Akko stormed the library doors open.

Diana's jaw dropped from the surprise and so did the students who were in the vicinity.

"Miss Kagari!" The librarian exasperated, inhaled deeply for more scolding but Akko sprinted towards Diana.

"Professor Ursula!" Akko yelled, alarmingly, pointing at a direction.

Diana understood the message and quickly closed the book, carrying it with her as she followed Akko outside.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **So I did change the rating to T as it would allow me to write a little bit freely now. Thank you so much for reading this far. You have all my love and thanks. Be sure to read The Blaze which is about the Mirrors' POV to have some insight into their characters. A little warning, it has an M rating. Also, I have another upcoming oneshot for Dianakko that I'll post this week. Please check it out when it comes out.**


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Akko arrived at Astronomy tower as fast as she could. She composed herself when she reached the doorway, knocking lightly on the wood. She excused herself when she found the door wasn't locked.

When she got in, Professor Ursula stared at her flabbergasted from her desk. Alcor was busy scratching his feathers on his bird stand.

"You called for me, professor?"

The redhead witch craned her head sideways. "I did?"

"Ehh?" Akko's chest tightened all of a sudden. "But Avery and her team told me that you were looking for me."

Professor Ursula stood up from her chair and ambled towards her. "If I'm looking for you, I'd talk directly to your team." She stared out the window and found that the blue sky was being covered with dark clouds. "Oh dear, it seems we'll be having a rain tonight."

Akko turned around, ready to leave and get to Diana fast, but she lingered some more to ask. "So you didn't call me?"

"No," she shook her head.

A sour taste formed in Akko's mouth. She didn't know where it came from, but she knew there was something that wasn't right. She wanted to make sure immediately—to hear Diana's voice. This is one of the reasons why witches should consider using cell phones in the school.

"Akko," she said, sensing her student's sense of dread. "What's going on? Diana said she was going to tell me about something. But our conversation was cut short. Is it about that?"

"Professor," Akko rushed towards her idol and hugged her tight. "Diana... Diana might be in trouble!"

* * *

 _ **What has**_ happened to her, Akko?" Diana followed the Japanese girl through the hallways with mixed feelings going round in her heart but at the sight of Akko disheveled when she went back for her, and now walking along the narrow dimly lit corridor in the same direction as she did, she felt all the contradictions not fading away.

"She needs help!"

Diana's eyes narrowed, noticing how vague the answer was. "Akko, what happened to her?" she repeated.

"Umm... she started spewing weird words. It looked like she was possessed or something. I don't know what words they were. I'm sure you'd know about it, and don't say it's French. I know what French is."

Diana stood for a moment, arrested in mid-motion, noticing that her lover was reluctant to stare back at her. "Akko, look at me."

And she did but only for a few minutes.

"Tell me what happened before that." She insisted while searching Akko's face. "Your description is somehow vague."

Akko grinned, but only for a second. It was as if she realized that she shouldn't have made that expression. "I just don't want to convey the wrong information. I might have overreacted when I do give you the full story. It's best that you see it."

"Where are we headed?" Diana asked, stalling her. In the quest of finding proof or any problem that she can't distinguish. "I thought Professor Ursula was at the Astronomy tower."

"Well she was—er... she and I had to visit the wooden mirror to have a look at it."

"Why?"

"We might have a clue to the whole doppelganger thing." She began to strut yet she couldn't hear any footfalls beside her. "Diana?" she asked, looking back to where the British girl remained, frozen. "Diana, let's go! You're wasting time!"

"You're not..." Diana began with a slow deliberation, "her."

"What?"

"You're not my Akko!" She abruptly took her wand from her sash and pointed it towards her. The tip of the wand ignited producing a rather impertinent source of light, ready to cause harm.

Akko's doppelganger flinched at the sight of the weapon. "Diana, you're being too paranoid—" She broke off, her voice shaking as she spread her arms towards her. "Touch, me. Confirm it's me. I'm the same Japanese transfer student 'Just call me, Akko' with the food in her mouth."

Diana's eyes glanced from the extended arm to Akko's eyes, still suspicious, but the glow on the tip of her wand wavered. "I need to ask you a new question to prove your originality."

"Ask away, Diana." She grinned slightly.

Diana couldn't comprehend but she knew it was weird and Akko's smile was disturbing. "What was the last thing I told you before we parted ways at the library?"

"Hmm, well you said something like 'Akko, I can go with you.'" She clapped to herself with a big grin.

The answer was right, but Diana could not shake the feeling off of her. There have to be more ways to prove that Akko before her was the original. Now she wished she had given her a kiss mark so she'd look for it as proof.

"I am Atsuko Kagari, Diana." The shorter girl began to show off her childhood scars. Perfectly in place and now Diana wondered if doppelgangers received the same wounds. "Please take my hand."

Diana returned her collapsible wand back safely on her sash and reached for Akko's hand.

"Diana? Are you here?"

The voice was unmistakable and quite frightened. Swiftly looking behind her, a familiar usual strut echoed just behind the left corridor. Someone was arriving towards them from the other side of the corridor; it appeared to be two footsteps side by side.

"Akko, please, don't create an alarm in the hallways." Diana heard Professor Ursula's voice.

"Akko?" Diana's eyes widened, as her mind joined the pieces of the puzzle together. She stared back at the person she was with.

It was too late for her when she caught the glint in Akko's eyes when she smiled mischievously. When their hands touched, Diana's world turned upside down.

Her head became dizzy, feeling as if she faded away like a rush of slow, glistening wind. The next thing she knew, she and Akko weren't in the corridors anymore. They were in a round room with a high ceiling with an equally tall shelf in the middle.

Diana's eyes blinked multiple times before adjusting to the darkness. Dark thick clouds covered the only window that provided them with light. She sighed at the sight of a harsh light that came from behind the shelf, eyes beaming vividly contrasting with the opacity of the dark.

But then, she could spot the dark figure of a tall girl distinguishing in the distance, as she walked vertically through the darkness from the wall.

"As witches, your only forms of transportation are leylines and brooms." Footsteps echoed as the light grew nearer. "I'm quite sure it was your first time teleporting, but here you are. Dizzy, but at least you haven't lost your lunch."

Diana retrieved her wand from her sash and pointed in the direction of the sound.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you." The stranger giggled.

The other girl smiled as she realized that it was her doppelganger the Akko-imposter brought. Her face features could be traced as to belonging to her, as the girl's figure was blurred, but there was something about the manner in which her hands were calmly on her sides and the casualness of his hair fluttering in the morning breeze that truly made even the rudest observer realize that it was her—another Diana Cavendish.

"No wait," the other Diana took another step. "I am you."

The last thing Diana remembered at the shock of seeing herself was black as she passed out.

* * *

" _ **Diana?" Akko has**_ been searching for her girlfriend ever since she has told Professor Ursula everything that Diana hadn't—the one about the doppelgangers, their leads and how they could have gotten to her.

They had searched through the library and at the dining area but the prodigal girl was nowhere to be seen.

"Where was the last place, you've seen her?" her professor asked.

It took Professor Ursula three times to repeat the question and to snap her fingers in front of the younger girl so Akko would focus on her. The redhead witch didn't want to give more afterthoughts or countless worries to trouble the brunette's heart. Professor Ursula opted to be the balance and peace of mind to Akko, who had been preoccupied in her haste to find Diana.

"In the library," Akko finally answered. "But I don't think she'll be there. We did agree we'd meet in class if my visit to you were to take up most of the break time."

The French witch placed her fingers on her chin, in deep thinking like it's not all about the outside of the house rather than the interior.

"Hey Akko! The class is starting soon."

Heads turned towards the approaching teammates of Akko. The hallway leads to their next class so no wonder they appeared. Lotte had been carrying a book while Sucy might have magically kept it hidden by her chest. Akko had seen such magic as if Sucy's seemingly normal clothes contained a void that serves as pockets.

"Lotte! Sucy!" In a rush of adrenaline, she sprinted towards them. "Have you seen Diana? I can't find her anywhere."

Lotte who was shaken up from Akko's slight outburst adjusted her glasses and answered. "No, we thought you were with her." Lotte glanced at Professor Ursula who was walking towards them. "I'm sure she's going to be in the classroom. We have the next subject with her."

"But, I haven't seen her since lunchtime!" Akko turned her hands into a fist, her knuckles turning white. "Diana would always tell me where she will be."

"Maybe she got sick of you?" Sucy snickered.

"Sucy!" Akko yelled, hurt. Her eyes watering that her friends sensed how bad the situation is. "No! Diana won't get sick of me!"

"Hey, Akko, don't cry." Lotte patted Akko's shoulder as Professor Ursula offered the Japanese girl a handkerchief. "Sucy! Apologize!"

"I was just joking. There's no way Diana would get tired of her."

When Akko's breathing came in a normal rhythm, Hannah and Barbara happened to pass by with the purple team, gossiping.

"Oh thank the seven stars!" Akko approached Diana's teammates, interrupting. "Have you seen Diana?"

"Uh..." Hannah and Barbara stared at her before glancing at each other.

"No?" Hannah said though it came out as a question.

"We were going to ask you that," Barbara said.

Akko's ears and including those around perked up at the incoming conversation. The rest of the blue team took turns in saying what's on their minds.

"We haven't seen her since lunch."

"We figured you might have known."

"Sup, guys?" Amanda greeted as she and the rest of her team came into the conversation. "What's with the faces?"

"Amanda, Diana is missing!"

"Say what now?" Her hands perched over her back, her weight shifted to her left foot. "Where would a Cavendish ran off to when there's class?"

On Amanda's left, Constanze's face grumbled, her head surrounded with questions. Jasmika placed her free hand on her cheek, while the other was busy carrying a pile of apples. "This is not good news."

Someone cleared their throat. "Excuse me, we can't help but overhear."

Akko forgot about the fact that Avery and her team were still in the vicinity. The Canadian and her British teammates lingered.

"Forgot about us, eh?" Avery said, "Rude."

"Have you seen Diana?" Akko she asked them for clarity, bearing the expression of someone who was braved for something, some kind of awful news.

"Wasn't she with you?"

Whatever she had been expecting, it hadn't been that. Akko's throat moved as she swallowed. "What are you talking about? I left for Professor Ursula. You told me that, and that wasn't true."

"What?" The purple trio averted their gazes towards the French Professor.

"As I recalled," Professor Ursula fixed her glasses in a nervous gesture. "I didn't ask you two about that."

"But you were there, professor." Mary disagreed. "We were heading towards the library when you arrived to tell us you were looking for us."

Akko's head spun. So does that mean the doppelganger can shift faces too? Or were there three of them? She and Professor Ursula looked at each other horrified.

"So Diana is still nowhere to be found?" Sucy asked. "You better make sure this doesn't reach Wangari or her team."

"Akko," Blair interrupted. "How much information can be stored in the head of yours, you came back to the library and called for her. You were the last one she was with."

"They got her," she whispered. A roiling black wave of despair rose, threatening to overwhelm her. Realizing she wasted time here with just talking. "But where? Where would they take her?"

Only a few of them got the gist of what was happening, but the green team was used to hanging out with Akko and many of the magical mysteries. The purple team wasn't but they kept their silence. Hannah and Barbara were just new to this.

"Maybe you can find a clue at that place where that wooden mirror is," Sucy suggested.

Lotte slammed the bottom of her fist on her other palm. "Sucy's got a point. That could help! After all, we did see you suspiciously heading there."

"Professor!" she faced towards the older witch, her eyes flaming with determination. "Lead me to where the wooden mirror is hidden."

Professor Ursula nodded before she and Akko rushed off towards the other end of the hallway. When the echoes of their footsteps faded and the trails of their hairs disappeared, the others who were left

"So," Avery started to defeat the resounding silence that permeated the air when the teacher and student left together, running. "Why is the school's dunce looking for Diana Cavendish again? Is it private tutoring?"

"Ahhh—yeah, sure..." Akko's friends answered, thus breaking the awkward silence that was so characteristic of the Japanese girl.

* * *

 _ **Diana woke up**_ rooted on a spot, just standing there, unconscious for quite a few minutes. Finding herself unable to move by some force of binding powers. She was only standing there. The only source of lightning from the lamp was an ordinary fire. It registered to Diana that her doppelgangers couldn't invoke the power of the spirits, so they will have to do with the real thing.

Her heart leaped when the lamp floated into the air. That's when she noticed that wasn't the only object moving. There were a number of vials all containing dark red liquid, by the rusty smell that floated in the air, Diana knew it was blood. The smell was so strong she could practically taste it in her mouth.

Diverting her attention elsewhere, she saw one copy of Margaret Cavendish's book floating and pages turning as her own doppelganger read it. Akko's doppelganger had her hands pressed firmly on each the side of her forehead as if she was concentrating on doing something.

That's when Diana noticed that below them were some strange markings. A small magic circle but it was big enough that could fit three people. She could not even guess what medium they used. They were glowing bluish inks on the floor, and it ran in patterns on the floor. Diana's doppelganger's forefinger wiggled around as if it served as a wand.

It was a power that Diana couldn't comprehend. She hadn't read much into the book before she was interrupted and whisked away. The only information she knew was that there was another world out there and these imposters came from the other side. The only description she managed to condense with the extravagant adjectives were that their world and this world was mirrored.

She caught at the corner of her eyes what Akko's doppelganger was trying to achieve. She caught a glance of the same huge needle-like instruments floating next to her. It was full of the same dark red liquid. A tangy taste lingered inside Diana's throat as she watched the needle empty itself on a clear wine glass.

Diana's doppelganger noticed she was awake and ambled towards her, the floating book followed her. The light from the fire threw a dark gold glow across her face, her hair, but she could see how pale she was, even under that, and the starkness that took over her expression as she spoke. As if the shadows were getting harsher.

"We did not wish to scare you. Do you faint often?"

Diana found herself unable to speak, seeing that the imposters were able to use magic without wands or spells.

"You must be brimming with questions, Diana." She giggled. "You know, it's weird, calling you Diana. I need a nickname, I think. To meet my other self is a pleasure and violates the act of other world traveling."

"You are quite an eccentric one, my princess." She threw the needle towards her.

"Atsuko," Diana's imposter whispered, catching the thrown object through an invisible force. "Do not strain yourself, but could you adjust the mirror's position as it says in the book?"

"How do you use magic without wands?" Diana asked, her voice croaked, gulping air in her dry throat from sudden fear.

"Witchcraft is originated from kinesis abilities." The other Diana simply said, without lifting her face from the needle. "Humans can manipulate matter without having to learn any weird spells. Your ancestors—the ancient witches—only created names and phrases to call upon those forces. The same way non-magical people today named forces like volcanoes, storms, and other natural calamities. You can say that witchcraft is actually born from the power of human mind."

On the other hand, the other Akko brandished her arms in circles and the wooden mirror did a somersault before it's properly placed where it should be.

"Be careful Atsuko!" The other Diana yelled.

"Sorry," Atsuko grinned then a clear wine glass scooted into her hand coming from the ground. "All preparations ready, my princess."

The other Diana then faced her once more; it was like staring in a mirror. "Do you know what this is?"

She knew what that is. She caught Akko's doppelganger about to stab her with that—the horrible memory of that night when Diana feared the worst about to happen; however, Diana noticed something different. It was bigger than the last time and the needle point was a bit thicker and made of sharp glass.

"See those vials around?" she asked. "Those are blood. Tried many times to conduct this summoning and those vials are failures." She smiled sinisterly, the light from the glowing ink reflected in her eyes. "'One from the earth and the other half from the blaze,' believe me I tried to use other combinations before discovering what I truly meant."

"Why?" Diana said in a low tone—a one-word question that cut to the chase. "Why to Akko?" Though many questions plagued her mind at the moment, such as, what are they trying to summon.

"Are you demented?" her exact reflection rolled her eyes. "It's just not her. It can be you. You made it harder when you couldn't leave her side. So we had to disguise ourselves as Professor Ursula and talked to Avery and her team. Mind you, it was very difficult. We had to do it the witches' way. Making potions and drinking it. But it was all worth it! Your blood is available to us now."

Diana cursed at herself internally, desperate to flee; she weighed the options of her escape. She could break out of the invisible grip that surrounds her body, tried reaching for her wand. Her hand struggled to grasp her waist fast but the collapsible wand was nowhere near her.

"This wouldn't hurt," Her doppelganger had a wicked playful grin as she pointed the sharp part by the crook of Diana's upper arm, ready to draw blood upon seeing a rich vein.

From above, the round window showed that the weather was beginning to worsen. The rain poured steadily down. With a heavy heart, Diana muttered the only name that gave her hope, with a tear that escaped her eye. "Akko..."


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

Akko's muscles were already beginning the now-familiar burning in her heart, lungs, and legs, her mind tightening and focusing. She could hear the roaring in her ears now, louder than her own breathing as she and Professor Ursula hurried towards the path to the Luna Nova Archive Library.

The weather suddenly worsened. Now the sky grew darker, about to spill heavy rain in matters of minutes. The rest of the gang followed: Sucy, Lotte, Amanda, Constanze, and Jasminka, even Hannah and Barbara.

Professor Ursula saw that she's once again letting students skip classes. Fearing the consequences later, though she figured that if the Academy's prodigal student indeed is in trouble, the Headmistress could be swayed to minimize the students' detentions.

She took her wand from her sash and chanted the spell to materialize the entrance to the building. The soft glow emanated the air but somehow the effort of the spell was canceled out. "Oh dear," the redhead witch muttered.

"What's wrong, Professor?" Akko asked.

"Something's blocking the spell to open the door." She explained upon regaining composure.

"Why would the door not open then?" Sucy asked.

"That means Diana could be in serious trouble!" Akko yelled, discarding the inquiring and worried looks of those around them.

"Akko," Lotte clasped both of her hands together to her chest before resting her hand on one of the Japanese's shoulder. "Calm down. There could be a number of reasons why."

"We wasted time already getting here!" She thrashed her arms around. "We must act quickly!" In her haste, a soft tug on her side made her jumpy.

She turned around to see Constanze pointing at Stanbot. The little robot was on the ground now, flailing his arms while imitating a sound of a bomb.

"Eh?" Professor Ursula tried to be the voice of reason. "Now now, we have no use for explosives."

Akko contemplated for a while but her impatience qualities had no room to improve her decisions. All she had was a gut feeling and so far, she's alive. "Can you do it?"

Constanze nodded as Stanbot manifested a long red bomb with a fuse from inside his machinery. The German girl reached for it and showed it to the rest.

"That looks like a weak bomb," Amanda observed. "Got any stronger blast than that?"

Constanze then gave directions to everyone with the help of interpreters of her sign language and Professor Ursula knew it was too late to talk reason with the kids.

* * *

 _ **Diana was used**_ to medicinal practices where blood is used. Her mom was sickly which is why Diana was used to seeing her mother go through all kinds of medical tests and cures—both witchcraft and science. She even immersed herself in reading medicinal books; however, she shuddered at the fact that the needle-like instrument sucked blood from the crook of her arm frightened her to the core of her being. It felt as if she was stung by a hornet. She thrashed around, trying to weaken the bond around her.

"Are you done?" Atsuko asked as soon as her partner was done extracting blood from Diana.

"Yes," the other Diana wiggled her finger as if beckoning something to come closer.

The clear wine glass floated from the other Akko's grasp and glided the through the air. Diana watched as they mixed both life liquids in it.

Diana's doppelganger splashed the blood on the wooden mirror; thick liquid covered the glasses smoothly in all areas. She was chanting a riddle from another language but Diana could make it out.

" _The life of a human consists of the blood, which is the seat of the creature's spirit. When lightning struck the beach, it fused sand into glass and another world formed for they were made by the bare reflection of light. Smeared upon the other creates the opening."_

Atsuko stared at their earthen guest with a wide grin plastered to her lips. "I suggest you stay where you are rooted until the summoning ends. One misstep and you might come with us to the other side and you may never get back here."

Diana's eyebrows shot upwards, she stopped moving then. The thought of being trapped in another world was horrifying. She shivered between the invisible binds and could she not tell at that point if it was on account of the chilly breeze coming through the open window or because she was scared. She could hardly tell that herself.

"It'll be over soon," Atsuko reassured her. "Once the summoning is done. I advise you stay where you're standing. That's a safe place after all."

"My dear Atsuko does not lie." The mischievous one said.

Diana observed her other counterpart once more. Coldness and foreign expressions graced her features with a hint of mischievousness. The same sort of face she saw the wooden mirror reflected when she stood in front of it before the Samhain festival.

The doppelganger was done preparing the mirror, raising the same clear wine glass that reflected so bright and intricate it could be a mirror of the Pope's golden goblet.

She ambled sneakily behind the Japanese girl, twirling a lock of brown hair in her finger and whispered sultrily in her ears. "Positions, Atsuko. We shall depart soon."

Atsuko looked like she was in a trance. She gazed at the other Diana upwards with such passion lit by more than the scarlet flames of fire that crackled in the lamp. They are definitely flirting, Diana could tell.

The brunette nodded then moved several steps on a certain position in the magic circle. The other Diana moved to a spot next to the earthen girl's presence.

"After this is done," she said. "I'd advise you to destroy every copy of the Blazing World and I would too when we get back to the world beyond the Mirror Glass. It was a mistake to indulge into another world you shouldn't be sightseeing."

Diana's mouth was dry as if she'd been swallowing cotton, finally getting a glimpse of what's about to occur in this dark tower and how wrong she was once more when she came to a conclusion so easily.

A sharp bang echoed through the room as if someone had set off a firecracker. Diana shifted her gaze to the entrance; Professor Ursula, the red team, green team and her own teammates were there. Most of them were sporting shock faces, Akko's expression was thunderous.

Diana could hear her heart beating in her ears. It was as if she had come to Akko with her heart in her hands, raw and bleeding, and now she waited for Akko to cause chaos.

* * *

 _ **Atsuko stood there**_ in fear. Her counterpart led a small army of her earthen friends. They ducked inside the blasted entrance of the tower just as the sky opened up from an upcoming storm due to the side effects of their summoning. Rain water came down like the spill through a breaking dam.

"Diana?" Water droplets spattered Akko's face; her hair was flattening the way it always did in the humidity and damp.

"Akko!" Diana gasped at the presence of everyone.

Atsuko could only imagine the misinterpretation the earthen would think of seeing the mess around them. She fixed into a fighting stance, ready to protect the princess that occupies her heart and the sole future crowned queen of the Blazing World.

A streak of lightning flashed from outside the window then the roar of it came next. Earthen eyes opened to a nearly gruesome sight of blood vials, sinister magic circles, an uncannily mirrored persona of Diana and Akko, a ritual that looked like a cult offering and, a mysteriously bound prodigal Cavendish girl.

Everyone stood there, shell-shocked. Earthen Hannah and Barbara clung into each other's arms.

"Oh, what do you know? Akko's right." Sucy said nonchalantly as if to lighten the somber mood. "Diana Cavendish indeed needs saving."

Atsuko stared back at her counterpart. Akko's mind could not process the fact of what her eyes are witnessing. Panic blasted through everyone in the room, causing them to ready their stances into an offense at the doppelgangers.

"YOU LET HER GO!" Akko yelled furiously, standing in the middle. Her eyes burned with a familiar passion and determination that seemed to shine like stars. She was about to pounce like a Jaguar but her princess was quicker.

Princess Diana extended out her arms, using a shield of disarming. The Earthens were all pushed away, rendering them armless from any attack they could give. Atsuko truly was fascinated with her lover's strength in kinesis powers.

With such a gesture, the witches' wands were blasted away from their hands. Even Stanbot—the little mechanical robot-familiar—wasn't safe as he flew away and broke down. Sparks flew from his circuits and a horrified shriek came from Constanze.

Akko was the only one who was able to recover fast from the shock. As she was used to being blown away, making her stamina peak higher than the rest. She tackled Atsuko's lover, pushing the Earthen Diana in the process for she was close to the vicinity.

Realizing Atsuko failed to protect her, "Princess Diana!" Atsuko shouted, alarmingly.

Princess Diana fell back with a grunt, hitting her head hard on the ground, losing consciousness. The glass goblet she was holding onto shattered as it collided to the floor.

Earthen Diana, on the other hand, still found herself a victim to invisible ropes, though the tightness loosened a bit; she managed to squirm in an effort to remove it.

In the clamored mess, the others managed to retrieve their wands from where it flew.

Atsuko thrusts her hands forward and pinned her earthen version on the wall. "How dare you disrupt the summoning?" she roared as loud as an incoming thunder.

An invisible force has trapped Akko. The witches weren't used to seeing wandless magic so the fear of the unknown had them frozen from fear. Now everyone understood why the great Diana Cavendish was bound.

" _N-nani?"_ A small line had appeared between Akko's brows, staring back at her own doppelganger. " _Dare da?_ "

" _Watashi kimi wa, Akko!_ " Atsuko answered, never leaving her position. Like her earthen counterpart, she wasn't adept to magical abilities. She had to focus thrice as much as her companion to do even a simple thing. "Listen to me Akko, don't disrupt us. We're just trying to go home."

"What?" Amanda asked.

"Go home?" Jasminka repeated what she heard.

"Yes home!" Atsuko averted her gaze towards them. She still stood there, never leaving her spot. With her other hand, she flicked her finger and shards of the broken glass goblet flew to her palms. Then all of a sudden, she was able to conjure green flames. It levitated perfectly in her hand. "I'd advise you all to stay where you are!"

She didn't have to spell it out. Professor Ursula spread her arms, protecting the students behind her.

* * *

 _ **Diana recognized**_ that fire. Her dry throat involuntarily gulped air at the sight of the wild majestic flames, being tamed at the hand of Akko's doppelganger.

The fire burns green, can be made use as bombs, can burn underwater, hard to put out and one of the most dangerous magical substances in the world. Usually, witches need to learn a complicated spell to conjure the legendary Greek fire.

"This is the only procedure to get us home." Atsuko barked. Anger reflected in her red bright eyes. "We're not doing anything wrong! My princess and I are only trying to summon a portal that would lead to our own world. Trust me I'd rather leave this awful plane of existence!"

"H-help!" Akko tried to gasp for air, every bone in her body shuddered. Then she dropped her arms to her sides after seeing black stars orbiting in her vision.

"AKKO!" Professor Ursula and the others were ready to face the remaining conscious doppelganger head on without their wands, especially Constanze who was seething with rage, carrying a huge wrench. Sucy, on the other hand, was ready to throw her potions.

Like a frightened cat, Atsuko readied to pounce. Her eyes narrowed into slits, her hairs standing. Diana looked at her with some sort of pity- not the disgraceful type, but rather the sympathizing.

"A-Atsuko," Diana said, the voice was sweet and loving.

Akko's doppelganger turned around in surprise. For a moment there, she thought it was her princess who called for her. The professor and her friends in the vicinity watched the events unfold.

But it wasn't her princess. It the earthen Diana—the heiress of the Cavendish line. She was now on her knees, struggling to stand on both feet. Though her hands still at her sides. "Please let her go. The others won't attack you. I'll help you finish the summoning."

Atsuko's eyes became a little teary. She released her earthen counterpart slowly, attempting not to provoke the others into attacking her. As Akko rolled over sprawled onto the ground, Professor Ursula and the remaining teams lowered their weapons and their guarded stances, when strong winds started to rage through the building again.

They heard the growls of thunders and blinding flashes of lightning in the sky. Something shone so brightly that Diana thought for a moment it was a witch light stone, but the illumination was less bluish-white than that. It glowed with a dim silver color, deep, like the surface of a clear river coming from the magic circle and the glass of the wooden mirror.

An unexpected whirling air came from the wooden mirror, grabbing Atsuko and Diana towards its surface.

Atsuko floated in the air, helpless. " _Iie_!" then began babbling a list of curses in Japanese.

Professor Ursula, Sucy, Lotte, Amanda, Jasminka, and Constanze stared helplessly as it occurred. Hannah and Barbara were close to fainting when Diana turned upside down.

Diana remembered that the doppelgangers kept telling her to stay where she was rooted. She did, but that was because she was being cautious of them and when Akko caused her to fall when she tackled the doppelganger, she was out of place. The portal's instruction was clear and they were all fools.

"N-no," Atsuko started fighting back from the compelling grip. "YOU GRABBED THE WRONG DIANA! PLEASE DON'T LET ME PART FROM HER, I DON'T WANT TO LOSE HER!"

Atsuko said 'fear' and Diana understood it because she felt it as well; it was the fear of leaving, of losing Akko in every day. Atsuko spoke of 'lose' and she knew what Akko's counterpart had intended.

Losing frightened her because it meant that she would no longer be with her lover, that she would no longer be herself by the time the sun would cast the moon away from the sky and take its rightful place.

Diana finally freed her hands from the clutches of the invisible reins, only to point her outstretched hands towards the others, with a silent plea for help. Professor Ursula acted quickly and tried to grab onto her student's hands. But an unknown force pushed her away. Jasminka was speedy when she caught the older witch.

"Now what is it this time?" Amanda growled, shielding her eyes from the dusty wind.

The others began to sink into her knees, Hannah and Barbara had already fainted. The room was now dimly lit as the fire in the lamp wavered and it seemed to Diana as a bad omen, almost foretelling the events that were about to unfold. The cold fear in Diana's stomach had spread to her veins.

Diana thought she was going to depart life when her most precious memories flashed before her eyes. The day she met the Japanese new transferee at the dining hall; unbeknownst to Akko, she had a plant on her head. Their bickering and arguments that followed after that, Diana's way of subtle flirting before and after Samhain festival, when she ran away because of mixed feelings and for Akko to chase her back, their first broom ride together. Diana could still feel Akko's first ever closeness when she hugged her from behind. She remembered the time when Akko had taken her between her arms, had cried for her when Diana couldn't let even a tear fall from her eyes and had encouraged her to lift her chin up, even if the pain overpowering her body was intense.

Their first date, the first announcement of their relationship to their friends, their first real kiss, and all the acrobatic broom ride feelings she had with Akko for the first time in her life after a long time. Diana clutched the spot in her collarbone where the kiss mark was fading, holding on to the closest proof she had of Akko's love for her.

She missed the old problems she had, when those simple fears were just meeting Akko's parents, staying quiet and not getting caught while they sneak in some lovers' tryst in the bedrooms, hallways and even the school's library.

Diana stared at Akko. Her lover still lay there unconsciously. Her heart grieved at the thought that she might not see her Akko ever again. But now, after she had sensed on her heart, the manacles of death from being separated by her beloved. She took a lungful of air, wanting to wake the Japanese girl up before it's too late.

"AKKO!" her voice boomed as it echoed from the walls and the roof.

The shout stirred Diana's doppelganger awake. Princess Diana gasped as she bolted up from the floor, reaching for her beloved and failing to even touch each other.

Akko was last in rousing, her eyes blinking, slowly absorbing her surroundings. Diana was getting farther and farther away. When Akko's mind eventually comprehended the situation they were in, the last thing she saw was the sight of Diana's departure to the other world.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Thank you for reading all the chapters so far, guys. As you can see I couldn't wait to finish this first and write my other AU so I guess I'd have to write them both at the same time! Also, it's a bit confusing considering both Mirror Diana and Diana have the same names without any certain distinctions or nicknames. So I decided to use Mirror Diana's title before her name. Hope it's not too confusing :3**


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

 _Akko, help me!_

Those were Diana's thoughts repeated over and over again until it became a chant.

Her heart was pounding. A terrible sense of unreality choked her. Diana felt the acid inside her stomach churning. She was so far from people from her own world, screaming for help won't do her any good. She was away from people—away from Akko. She had a gripping panic attack.

It was as if she traveled through a Leyline without a broom and landed to a place she had no idea where she'd gone, with no sense of familiarity. Even the air in the place smelled like something strange and dark, some kind of scent she'd never breathed before.

The pain she received when she landed on a glassy surface was now in focus. For a split second, she felt like she had been wounded by the sudden fall, but as she lifted her blouse to check if indeed there were any gashes on her back, she surprisingly noticed that she bore not even a tiny bruise.

She raised herself to her knees, feeling sick and nauseated. Diana blinked away the dizziness and she was perplexed that somehow the sun shone brighter than it should be. When her eyes adjusted to the brightness.

Beside her, she saw Atsuko hugging her knees and her face buried, forming herself into a ball. Diana could sense the despair emanating off the girl. Atsuko missed her Diana the same way Diana missed her Akko.

Diana didn't want to believe it herself, but the way Atsuko looked rather helpless right now could only mean one thing.

Finding a way back home is impossible.

Diana was stuck in a foreign land, like a person who got stranded on a desert island and the whole world was lost from her forever. There was no one Diana could depend upon in this dimension.

Then her thoughts flickered to Akko and all her despair doubled. She couldn't stop the tears from coming. It was one trail at first, Diana could easily wipe it. She needed to become rational and need to find a way to get back to Akko. She cannot be emotional right now, but her sentiment got the best of her. Currently, there were trails on both of her eyes. She ran a hand through her hair and took a deep sharp breath to steady the rhythm of her breathing before ridding the tears off her face.

Akko wouldn't know that she was here all alone, on the verge of crying more. She could just imagine Akko raging. Now she wished that Princess Diana could have gotten more of her blood instead. But no, she only took what she needed. She only took what she thought she needed.

Diana's fist curled into a ball. She knew that losing Akko is a huge toll on her. She needed to escape this hellhole—to be with Akko once more.

She decided to scan the area. Her jaw dropped. Even at the day, the stars shone icily throughout the sky. The Starlight felt foreign on her skin like the bluest fires burn hotter. She found herself on a strange world in which different stars gloriously shine.

The new, strange, and wonderful qualities of the blazing light emanate from these stars shone through the glassy surfaces of the ground and the buildings. Diana read about the Blazing World in the book but no description could prepare her for the world behind the mirror where the sky stretched across the horizon and the distances that lay shadowed, magnetic in its mystery.

"Mirror world," she murmured. She had no idea that the name would imply both literally and figuratively.

Everything was made of glasses or fiery hot gases in this world. Even the trees stood stately with crystals for leaves. As the sun filtered down through the bare branches and glittered on the crystal leaves, the woods was every bit as alive. But despite that everything should be too bright for the eyes; Diana's vision was slowly adjusting to the brightness.

So much that she feels she's like she suddenly has eyesight 10 times sharper than an eagle's. Among the forest, she could see the sudden, quick crash of a fox bounding through the bush.

When her unseemly companion held her head up high, Atsuko's face was a mask. Diana knew deep down she was hurt as well. The brunette spread her arms out wide. As if she was welcoming lightning to explode down through her, into the transparent bricks at her feet. "A thousand sorrows in my heart, I'm ashamed for even showing my face to you."

Diana's eyebrow rose when Akko's doppelganger did start spewing words in romantic literature.

"But I will make up for my mistakes! I promise you!"

Diana mistakenly thought Atsuko was talking to her. She hadn't heard the soft footfalls behind her until it was too late. She turned around to see a stranger staring at them in astonishment. She wore rich clothing, silk and velvet, heavy leather boots and a long red cape. Diana reached automatically for the weapons at her sash, forgetting that her wand wasn't there.

"I have come a long way here, bearing terrible news." Atsuko continued, fear prevalent in her face. "I have returned, but the Princess is not with me."

"Atsuko," the woman sighed, disappointedly while removing her glasses. "What have you done?"

Atsuko's mask fell apart. There's no way she could disguise her guilt-ridden heart.

"I knew that the portal connecting to the earthen world was decimated. True to my word, I kept visiting the location of the portal until one day it suddenly closed. It's easy to deduce that you somehow violated the rules. There was no way to contact you and I am deeply disappointed for trusting that you two could find a way to get back on your own."

"We did! We were heading home!" Atsuko's eyes shined from the tears gathering. It trailed down on both of her cheeks. "It just so happened that the other me disrupted the summoning, which is why the heiress is beside me and not the princess!"

"You were not even guarding the princess with your life, Atsuko!"

Atsuko flinched at the yell. Now Diana couldn't decide whom she should feel sorrier for—herself or the mirror version of her lover. Atsuko was so brave and strong to be able to do this. Knowing what she must have felt made Diana guilty and ashamed of her hasty judgment and her distrust on Atsuko.

"The light was unmistakably from a portal," the older woman continued. "I thought the princess would be safe and sound."

Diana was a bit ruffled at first but she knew the older woman. "Professor… Ursula?"

"Why hello there, Miss Cavendish, or what do they call you back on the dirt world?" the French woman greeted.

Earth indeed means dirt. And the manner of how she said it wasn't insulting but rather a curious interest.

"There are more matters to discuss with you two rather than what they call me back on earth." She said, warily.

"Oh, I see." She was still wearing glasses and the light that reflected from the glass shone brighter at a certain angle. "Welcome to the Blazing World, a mirrored reality of yours."

Diana didn't want to proceed with formalities so she spoke matters instantly. "As much as you want your princess to return, I desire to return back as well!

"As much as we desire all that, Miss Cavendish. There is definitely a reason why Margaret Cavendish published the book as fiction and not as a fact because clearly, otherworldly traveling is forbidden."

Diana crossed her arms. "I have a lot of questions that need answering."

"I'm afraid that won't do." Professor Ursula said, putting her fist over her heart. "There are far more important matters to attend to. We might as well use what we have for now. And what we have now is you."

Clearly, Diana won't get anywhere else in a strange foreign land unless she complies to lend her help. Seeing Atsuko's straight posture slump a little, Diana sighed as Atsuko's been getting blamed for Akko's fault,

"The Empress Regent will be unhappy when she hears I let this happen." She took some clean cloth from her pocket and cleaned the dust off of her glasses. "Even as per her highness request, I could not help you escape the punishment you shall face, Lady Kagari."

Her tone must have come out bitter than she had intended. Diana figured that she's one of those people who use a person's last name to indicate the disappointment in a formal manner.

She straightened her posture a bit and wiped away tears. "I do not care about my well-being! As long as Diana—" she grimaced; managing to bite her lip so hard; she wounded herself, "As long as the princess returns home safely."

"Lady Atsuko," she spoke tenderly and handed her a medicine lip balm for the wound. "The truth of knowing that her Majesty's niece discovered that the book was not a fiction at all and got trapped in the other world will definitely get you punished. Earthen Diana being here herself is a breach of conduct and is sort of a punishment for the two of you and your counterparts."

Atsuko only stared at the medicine. Refusing to heal a wound she deliberately inflicted herself. Then her crimson lips parted to let out a soft exhale. "I know. I'm dreadfully ashamed."

"It's going to be alright," Professor Ursula said, trying to assure herself rather than Atsuko. "Let's just hope our Royal Highness Princess Diana finds another way to open another portal."

"There's no other way to open a portal!"

Diana's mind was still unsettled from all the emotions of this eventful day when Atsuko's yell triggered something in her. A familiar flash of vivid ten-second images came back to Diana without a warning, like it was projected directly onto the screen of her consciousness. The air grew thin and she had trouble breathing all of a sudden. When the memory came, a surge of hope was next. She herself forgot about the other possibility when she let anguish control her emotions and block her thinking capabilities but now that she had let the swirling emotions out, she was able to think vividly now.

"As I recall there are two ways to open a portal." Diana interfered. Now she has the attention of two blazing world residents but she does not let nervousness consume her. "I assumed the method you and the princess did was a temporary one—the summoning. Lady Margaret used a permanent method when she discovered the other world."

Professor Ursula sighed then manifested a copy of Margaret Cavendish's book out of thin air. "The book has proven itself truly a conundrum. The book and its creator itself are filled with mysteries and surely the princess wasn't able to tear her focus away from it."

In was only a few seconds before Professor Ursula tucked the book back into a void-like storage space but Diana noticed the subtle difference of the title.

 _The Description of a New World, Called The Earthen-World_

"Miss Cavendish, we have a request for you."

Diana's lucid thoughts disappeared when she was called back; she placed an arm on her hip, knowing that the request was not a request at all. "What shall it be?"

"Now the damage has been made, as much as we want to reverse the summoning, there are more important matters to attend to." Professor Ursula pointed out.

Atsuko's breath hitched. Her gaze dropped to the crystallized floor.

The redhead then faced the earthen once more. "Miss Cavendish, considering her majesty the Empress Regent is a ruthless ruler who doesn't hesitate to inflict punishments; she'll be hard to reason with. It's not only Atsuko's but mine as well on the line once we've been found out on this lie. It'll be easy for you to pretend you are royalty."

It wasn't the words but how she said it that ignited Diana's nerves. She turned her face around to look at her, but Chariot's face was one of empty emotion. Diana steeled herself for what those two had in store for her. "Then that means you have to answer some of my questions."

"A compromise, huh?" the older woman grinned. "If the answer is readily available by my vast knowledge then I might be able to help you."

"You may refer to it as such; all I want is to find my way homeward."

Atsuko placed a hand on her shoulder, "Not to make you a deviant but... I can offer to teach you how to use telepathy—or at least how to block out your thoughts. You might have come from earth but you still are human and you have magic within you. You are susceptible."

The girl stared up at Diana with those deep red eyes. Diana could see the dark flecks spread like arrows of black light around her irises.

"It's out in the open. Asides from the obvious lack of stiffness, I can read you like an open book. To pretend as the royal highness in front of her people and her aunt, you must learn to make your thoughts only for yourself."

"What do you mean?"

"Training starts once we get you in my chamber." Professor Ursula said.

* * *

 _ **Akko couldn't calm**_ herself at all. She has been tapping her foot for hours. She couldn't help but feel impatient and as the clock moves its hands, her worry deepens for Diana. Memories of her lover plagued her. The feeling of Diana's embrace every time they are alone, the sight of her smile that graced her lips, lips melting into each other still burned in her memory. With a sunken heart, Akko knew deep down that Diana's touch would mark her for the rest of her life.

Jasminka and Lotte were taking care of Diana's fainted. Meanwhile, Constanze has been repairing Stanbot while Amanda and Sucy started interrogating the doppelganger with questions. Surrounding her and never letting her escape.

There was no resistance or offense from the stranger but all they met was silence and provoking smirks.

"Alright there, Princess double," Amanda circled on their hostage, "Talk! I will repeat the question once more. Where is the real Diana Cavendish and what was all that?"

"She's not talking." Sucy made a snarky comment.

"I'll make Miss Cupcake talk!" Amanda drew out her wand. "Now talk or I shoot flames at you!"

Princess Diana leaned closer to the wand. "Go ahead."

"She's weird," Amanda said, lowering her wand and glancing at Sucy beside her. "Not Sucy kind of weird; weird in her own kind of way. And it bugs me."

"I'm an oddball," Diana's imposter said with a grin. "Strangeness fascinates me."

"So you like this kind of stuff, huh?" Sucy pondered.

"You're one to talk, Vore Queen."

Akko could detect a smirk on Sucy's tightly pressed lips at Amanda's proclamation.

Then the doppelganger took a step back from Amanda and ambled towards Akko. Her warm breath brushed faintly over. At that instance, Akko realized how desperate she was to wish that it was the real Diana in front of her. To feel her Diana's arms wrapped around her body and their lips to connect again.

Princess Diana blow some air into her face, taking Akko out of her reverie. Seeing Diana's doppelganger was a constant reminder of the terrible reality that she wasn't the Diana she fell in love with—Just another girl who has the same face.

It was a terrible sense of reality. Akko's blood rushed backward through every vein in her body and her ears turned hot in anger. She bit her lips as tears stung her eyeballs. From the corner of her eyes, Professor Ursula watched her.

"Calm down, Akko, it's alright," Professor Ursula said as she rubbed her back gently, hoping to dissipate the visible anger when she's crying.

In lessening patience, Akko was now something incomprehensible in her mother tongue, and with a burst of boldness, she stormed over to Diana's imposter, colliding into her, both of them landing on the ground with a loud thud.

Due to the sight of Akko coming undone, Lotte got closer and stood beside Sucy in worry, looking between their team leader and the girl who looked like her girlfriend. Then they saw that Akko was fully on top of her and was about to slapped her in the face. The doppelganger did nothing to shield herself from Akko's attacks.

"AKKO!" Professor Ursula tried to pry Akko off of Diana's doppelganger when her patience wore thin. But her grip on her was like tugging on an iron chain. When she was successfully pried off, the older woman scolded her. "Akko, you're better than this."

Hannah and Barbara woke up disoriented at the ruckus but Jasminka was there to update them with details.

"That was the only way we could get her to speak at all instead of being all mysterious and broody!" Akko attempted to break out of her idol's protective hug. "She's a bitch and she deserves to be slapped!"

"Miss Manbavaran—oof!" the older woman said, "A little help?"

Sucy nodded and fished out a poison and made Akko drink it by force. The calming potion proved to be effective when Professor Ursula let go of the angry brunette and she only stood there.

"I agree with Akko. Crazy blonde deserves it." Amanda said. She was leaning on a wall right now, hands behind her head.

The doppelganger's jaw tightened at Akko's words. The look on her face morphed from anger to anxiety and finally to pain. Her piercing blue eyes glittered with moisture. She almost looked hurt. It struck Akko as odd. Diana's doppelganger in her most vulnerable state was something Akko never expected to see.

"Please call me Mirror Diana. I don't enjoy hearing your insufferable nicknames for me. I also do not fancy being called Princess at all."

Akko stared at her. Mirror Diana shivered under her intense, glowing glare. Then she looked away again as if she was ashamed.

"In return, I'll answer all questions you have of me."

It's been an hour since the portal closed and all the others did was grill the imposter with questions. When they learned about the whole story, the remaining afternoon classes became unimportant.

Questions about the Blazing world and why Diana was sucked into the portal were easily answered. Apparently, it was all Akko's fault she disrupted the summoning and both Dianas' were pushed off from where they should be standing on the magic circle.

Now the conversation delved into the reason why people from inside the mirror can use magic without wands. It was plain unnecessary but there's nothing that could be done considering that it was Akko's own fault the summoning took a different turn to begin with.

"Alright well, let me explain to you in this simple term." Mirror Diana said. "Humans are the most powerful energy transmitters in the universe. There are energy fields vibrating in magnetic frequency around us, we are the only species on the planet that can control our thoughts, unlike animals. And human thoughts are made of electrical rhythm within the brain."

They nodded their heads, listening intently. But all Akko could think of was to throw a spell at her.

"If brains can transmit thoughts into our nervous system, it's not impossible that a brain can send an electrical wave through the air as it would through the nervous system. Our thoughts can be sent out and received just like a cell phone or a TV, and if you get really good at controlling your thoughts, you can channel them to affect anything you want."

"All in all, this sounds so creepy," Jasminka said. She stopped eating some of her snacks for a while.

"I DON'T CARE WHAT KIND OF POWERS YOU HAVE!" Akko roared then glanced at the rest of them. "WE MUST GET TO DIANA!"

"Could you say it again?" Amanda said to the mirror girl, annoyed."This time is serious simple manner?"

Mirror Diana sighed deeply. "It means I have the ability to move objects with my mind and read your thoughts but I'm a person with personal morals. Plus, mind reading is a sin punishable by death in our world if you're caught."

Now Akko understood the example given out. If Luna Nova professors could kindly use this method in teaching classes, she would get A's like Diana in no time. "So that's why you have the ability to move objects just by using thoughts alone and some rapid arm gestures."

"It'd be cool to use magic even without a wand or a broom," Amanda said deviously.

"But if you don't need wands," Lotte started. "Why do you do gestures with your hands and arms like that?"

"Simple: if you're having a hard time sending thoughts, arm gestures make it easier. As what we all do for body language." Mirror Diana mused. "If you ever need a word for it, it's called psychokinesis or telekinesis."

"So you can know someone else's thoughts?" Sucy pondered, a little frightening grin spread on her mouth, showing all her canine teeth, "Interesting!"

"We try not to." Mirror Diana giggled, pushing some strands of her hair behind her ear. "It's illegal in our world. That is why we learn to control and shield our brain waves from others who would venture into somebody else's head."

"Enough chitchat!" Akko yelled and stomped towards the stranger who bears the same face as her lover. "CAN YOU OPEN ANOTHER PORTAL OR NOT?"

"Akko please!" Professor Ursula ran in front of the mirror girl, using herself as an obstacle to keep Akko away. "Control yourself."

Mirror Diana took a few cautious steps back in case the professor tips over. "I'm afraid not—"

Akko stopped managing to get to her. Her body slumped and Professor Ursula had to hold her up high. Her eyes blinked away some tears; she took a sharp inhale before the bawling.

"Let me finish before you have a breakdown!" Mirror Diana hastily added, wiping the tears with her thumb. "I understand you, you know. My desire to return home to my people and to my Atsuko is as strong as your desire to with your Diana."

Akko didn't like the way she rubbed her tears away. The action reminded her of her Diana—the real Diana. So she buried her face in the Chariot's shoulder.

"I'm afraid not sooner. But I could." Mirror Diana retrieved a handkerchief from her pocket and offered but she was shunned. "The summoning you witnessed earlier is a second option to travel back quickly. There's another method! But mind you, it's very difficult task."

"Fire away," Amanda placed her hands on her hips, her green eyes sparkling at the sound of a new adventure. She was right about staying in this school; Akko indeed does make the academy interesting. "Anything to make Akko less of a crybaby she is now."

"She's always been a crybaby." Sucy has burned what's left of Akko's valiant traits.

Akko averted her gaze with a pout towards her friends who had an uncanny way of helping her get up when she's fallen hard on the ground. Then a smile gradually replaced the pout from her lips, her bright red eyes drifted briefly to Diana's doppelganger. Then she looked away with a sigh.

With a childish glee, the mirrored blonde girl lifted the copy of the book from the ground and turned the page to the part where she had memorized every line by the heart. She was definitely weird. Why else would a captive be gleeful of something?

" _When he fancied himself the happiest man of the World, he proved to be the most unfortunate; for heaven frowning at his theft, raised such a tempest, as they knew not what to do, or whither to steer their course; so that the Vessel, both by its own leightness, and the violent motion of the Wind, was carried as swift as an arrow out of a bow, towards the north-pole, and in a short time reached the Icy Sea_."

"I don't understand it one bit." Amanda huffed.

"Doesn't sound tasty at all too," Jasminka added and took a bite of her chocolate filled donuts.

Akko thought that Jasminka could be an expert on this so-called psycho-what-you-call-it-thing when she could conjure up donuts out of nowhere.

Hannah and Barbara went closer to the levitating book. Mirror Diana showed the page so they could read the passage over and over until they could understand it.

"Well," Barbara began. "It means that we need to commit a great sin and fly towards—the North Pole?"

"NORTH POLE?" everybody boomed at the same time.

"Totally," Hannah continued. "Fly towards the North Pole so a vacuum-like entity will suck us in."

"Suck us in?" Lotte glanced at Sucy.

"That Diana is mental," Sucy said, nonchalantly. "I don't know how I feel about all of what's happened though."

"B-but North Pole?" Lotte repeated again for emphasis.

With an air of childish excitement, the mirror girl took Akko's hand and smiled sweetly with her dreamy blue eyes. "How do you get to North Pole from here?"

"Uhhh," Akko began, looking upwards, the kind of stare that she might find an answer at the ceiling. "We fly via brooms or airplanes?"

"Oh!" Mirror Diana pondered. "So it'll take us days to get there."

"Wait a minute," Lotte said, panicking. "We're really going to the North Pole?"

"Pretty much," Amanda said. She was no longer bored; her face now donned a playful smile. "There are no Leylines that would lead us directly to the North Pole."

"How boring," Mirror Diana whined.

"Can't you like transport us there with your portals?" Akko asked.

"It doesn't work that way, I don't know this place too well to even transport with all of you with me. Others might get lost—or worst, their limbs."

There was a clapping sound that echoed around the room, eyes scattered, searching around. Akko found the source first, Constanze stood there and Stanbot perched on Constanze's head. He was already fixed.

Seeing Stanbot revived gave Akko inspiration. "I got an idea!"

"Akko has an idea." Sucy sighed. "We're in trouble."

A smile curved itself on Akko's lips while the rest of her friends waited for her to explain. Usually, Akko's ideas never remain ideas for they become plans. And ideas that entered the mind under the heat of desire remain there burning forevermore.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Sorry for the late update, guys. I wasn't feeling well. I'm feeling better now and hope you all like this. I'll be updating both Mirrored and Checkmate every week for those who are asking. I never miss my quota.** **This chapter and the next is mostly why I considered changing the rating to T.**


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

Upon hearing Akko's idea, everyone sported unique but ludicrous faces. Professor Ursula held her head, fearing an upcoming headache from constant worrying and all the anxieties piled up together while Jasminka offered Akko some candy.

Akko gladly allowed Jasminka feed her the last morsel of candy into her mouth.

"There should come a time where Akko should be banned with making ideas," Sucy said scarily.

"It's actually a good idea," Hannah said.

"Yes, it might work," Barbara added.

"But we're still on it, right Sucy?" Lotte placed a hand on Sucy's shoulder. The Mushroom Queen took a sharp breath before embarrassedly nodding her head.

Amanda sighed, scratching the back of her head. "I knew I signed up for this so I really shouldn't complain," she looked at the shortest girl at the whole group. "What do you say, Constanze?"

Constanze gave two thumbs up and nodded eagerly.

In just an hour, the ten witches set Akko's ideas into motion. Heading towards Constanze's underground secret laboratory, the group was divided into three.

With a gulp, the French witch placed a hand on her chest to calm her wild heart. "I know for a fact that we will receive such a scolding from all the professors. Hopefully, Headmistress could excuse all of us on this expedition. We are saving the Diana Cavendish after all."

Professor Ursula went on as their sole adult companion to lighten the dilemma to the academy's headmistress that one of their own students was abducted by people from a mirror world and that the only chance they could rescue her back was to leave to the North Pole and keep everything in secret.

The moment Akko's mom figure in the academy was out of sight; Akko's friends all stared at her, with motives unknown.

Akko gulped. "Yes?"

"Sorry, Akko," they all said before they captured Akko.

Akko knew she didn't deserve this treatment. How could her friends collectively decide that she should be bound to sit still when she couldn't even stay calm in one place even before all of this happened.

She watched as Constanze and an army of Stanbots were now tinkering with complicated machinery. Amanda, Jasminka, and Sucy were aiding Constanze to fix the Stanship while the discuss leylines and maps on a table.

The room, despite being huge enough to accommodate more than the size of the Stanship that the little German witch used when she participated in the ghost hunt, the noises made Akko's head pounded as all of her senses sharpened. Her arms were in a crossed position over her stomach.

"I can't believe we are doing this to Akko!" Lotte said in disbelief, witnessing that all were preoccupied with jobs to do.

Lotte's voice temporarily made the noises better for Akko as her attention spun towards her. Akko gritted her teeth together, fixing her gaze at her wand on the table. She couldn't Metamorphie Faciesse her way out of the invisible manacles that kept her in a wooden chair.

"Let me out of here!" Akko yelled. She has stationed away from the mechanic group but near enough that the wayfinding group could keep a close eye on her.

"Sorry Akko," Lotte said, genuinely guilty that the majority decided to restrain her in case she might otherwise cause harm and cause trouble. "Your impulsiveness will make things harder for any of us to get on track."

"True, we have to go to the North Pole as soon as possible," Hannah said, she shifted her weight to one foot and placed a hand on her hip

Akko's face twitched in anger, throwing her chin towards Diana's double. "But why is she free and I'm bound to this chair!"

"Unlike you, I don't create unnecessary havoc." Mirror Diana said, simply.

Her eyelashes blinked only once and Akko was disturbed at the fact that the strange girl's involuntary muscles are controlled voluntarily.

"I'm assisting peacefully." She added.

Akko pouted heavily. Her face emanated hurt. She almost felt bad about attacking the other Diana, but sometimes, she needed a good dose of tough stuff like this for her anger towards her was justified.

Lotte ambled towards her and placed both hands on her shoulder. "This is all for Diana, Akko. Do you understand? Once you calm yourself down, we can let you move freely."

Hannah sighed, "Totally! Control yourself, will you?"

"Good luck with that." Sucy passed by them while carrying a crate full of spare parts. "Diana's her impulse control."

Akko blew some air to her bangs. Sucy always has the way to give her a snarky comment. The wayfinding group was shaken at the suddenness their Mushroom Queen gave them even after she returned to the mechanic group. In a few minutes of silence, they went back to their jobs.

"Professor Ursula's coming with us, right?" Hannah asked. "I'd feel a bit more secure if a professor's coming with us."

"Yes she will," Lotte said. "She's discussing the details about our rescue mission to Headmistress Holbrooke."

"Of course," Barbara began. "Could you just imagine when Wangari and her team found that out? Headlines will be about our Diana Cavendish was brought into another dimension."

Mirror Diana stared at her, knowingly. "I'm fully aware you all don't want me here. Making me feel bad about myself, is a trouble you don't need yourself having the effort to."

Akko understood the gloomy atmosphere. The amount of tension between them and the only mirror princess was still insane. Some of the times they had to find something to distract ourselves from each other, but not Akko. Akko doesn't fully trust her and she wasn't afraid to show her opinions which are why it feels like she's been made to wear a straight jacket.

Mirror Diana turned her focus back to Lotte. "So, how do we get to the North Pole as soon as possible?"

"Well umm... we could use a leyline."

Her blonde brow knitted at the term.

Lotte instantly understood what the expression meant. "Are leylines different in your world?"

"We don't have leylines," Mirror Diana paused. But it didn't take long for her hesitation to vanish. "We have teleportation and portals. How are leylines any different from what I can do?"

Suddenly she vanished into a black hole and reappeared next to Jasminka and Amanda.

"What the he—Mirror!" Amanda fell on her bum. "Since when have you been there?

"Quite recently," she said nonchalantly

"You scared the life out of me!"

"My apologies," she said before teleporting back to where she stood before.

Now it's the mechanic group's turned to pause their jobs just to stare back at her quizzically.

"Describe leylines to me." Mirror Diana asked the wayfinding group, oblivious to the untrusting tension everyone was surrounded with.

Hannah and Barbara were now wrapped in each other's arms, frightened at the sight. Akko couldn't really offer her any answers, it wasn't covered on any of her classes. Or the Professors did discuss it but she wasn't listening.

Only Lotte was brave enough to speak despite the display of unusual magic. "Well, leylines are lines of magic that intersect along certain ancient, man-made structures. You need a certain ancient man-made structure to create a portal that allows you to instantaneously travel from one point to another.

"Is that so? One can't travel where there are no old rock and clay buildings."

"Precisely," Lotte said.

"At least it's better than non-magical people transport!" Akko shouted, turning her attention to her bookish friend. "I thought you said there's no leyline that leads to the North Pole."

"I said there's no leyline to get there directly. But there's a leyline that could get us near the North Pole."

Hannah and Barbara quickly stretched out the map of the Northern hemisphere. "True. Apart from St. Michael Alignment's, there are other leylines that we could travel from."

"The nearest we could go is from the UK to Greenland." Barbara chimed in.

"Hvalsey Church," Hannah said, perfectly showcasing lovers finishing each other's sentences. "Did I pronounce that right?"

No one answered her question and Akko's just exasperated once more on being held like a hostage. "Release me," Akko said, her voice grew cold like ice.

Mirror Diana's eyes never left Akko's, but for the first time, they seemed confused and alarmed by Akko's actions. Mirror Diana hesitated—not the way someone was weighing words to see how she should deliver them, but the way her words had conflicted her with different thoughts.

"As you wish," the blonde whispered. "Promise me not to do anything reckless." Her face went inches closer to Akko's.

"Wahhh? Don't go near me!" Akko's loud protest was drowned when a bunch of sensations and thoughts flowed into her head.

Akko didn't know what was happening inside her, but soon she realized it was something like reliving the past—a past that wasn't hers, to begin with.

Akko could feel she was there. It was her who had been hiding in the shadows in the halls with her mirror counterpart; it was her who masterminded the whole operation and the one who caused all the mistakes, it was her who made funny pranks on the school's student body.

At first, Akko thought Mirror Diana was just trying to let her know her as a person, but then it seemed Akko was genuinely curious about whatever Diana's mirror version thought and felt. Akko also wanted to know the world as the princess saw it. Akko had experienced her childhood, her mother, her aunt, her cousins, her favorite music, and the books she had read. Akko learned about her story with Atsuko—Akko's mirror version—who was the first person to keep a reality check on the princess if she sensed that she had drifted too far from the real world.

Akko witnessed a love story between them. The way Atsuko didn't find it odd at all with the ways Princess Diana perceived things. Even if she was a princess herself, she had always been insecure about expressing herself to other people, fretting they could understand her or even care—just the royalty of her title. Akko now felt all over the new kind of feeling of having someone who was truly absorbed in whatever that was on Mirror Diana's mind.

With Mirror Diana's endless thoughts and ideas that once were buried inside her head came streaming out like rivers into Akko's. Sometimes, Mirror Diana tried to stop something she was thinking, figuring it was boring or unimportant, but Akko wouldn't allow her to.

She knew Diana's counterpart faster than one could spell floccinaucinihilipilification in Japanese.

After the end of the long tale, Mirror Diana looked at her. They stayed still in a long stretching silence. The wayfinding group and the mechanic group had been staring at the both of them too for it was too curious to remove their eyes away Akko and Diana's mirror with their foreheads pressed together.

Akko should've been repulsed by all this if it was someone other than her Diana. Mirror Diana was not Diana at all. It was different, yet all she could feel in her pain wrenching heart was sympathy and understanding for the lonely Blazing world princess.

Mirror Diana then took her hand and placed it against her cheek, "I'm sorry for spilling everything in my life to you graphically. As this is probably hurting you, but I believe, in the long run, an honest, detailed account will be the best to clear your doubt. I just want you to know that never in my life had I experienced such a suffocating need for someone."

So when trust itself finally blossomed, all the fear ceased to exist. With a smile, Akko nodded as she could feel the invisible grip on her disappear. "You should have really done that from the start you know?"

Mirror Diana looked away, her cheeks turning pinkish. "I-I have self-doubts okay? I had to truly have a braver heart to fully show you my life, Ats—Akko."

"You miss her—the other me. Don't worry," Akko's face warmed, trying to pry her thoughts away on the mirror's rendezvous. "Your secrets are safe with me."

Professor Ursula entered the laboratory room and was surprised to see a sight of anxious students surrounding Akko and Mirror Diana. An emotion she knows all too well. "What happened?"

Akko stood up from the chair, smashing both her hands into a loud clap and rubbed them together. "Let's continue everyone!"

* * *

 _ **Diana went**_ through another teleportation the moment Atsuko told her to touch her hand. She still was not used to magically transforming into molecules and reappear on another certain place, but her landing was a bit better. A wave of dizziness hit her, but she managed to stagger to her feet and leaned herself on the nearby wall when the blood rushed away from her brain.

"Is everything fine?" Atsuko asked her, rubbing her back.

"I'm fine." Diana gasped. "Where did you take me this time?"

"Her Highness' bedchamber," she deadpanned.

Diana found a moment to distract herself around. There's a glowing glass bed embroidered with finest silks and cotton. Even though the building itself was made of glass, nothing was see through and all Diana could see was her own reflection.

"Let's get you to bed."

"What?" Diana swirled herself around to look at Atsuko quizzically. She could see the corners of Atsuko's lips turned up.

"Stop talking, you'll pass out," she waved off her hand. Atsuko draped Diana's arm over her shoulders while her other hand wrapped around her waist. "Professor Ursula will bring her most trusted partner here in any moment. She will definitely help us."

The second she was resting her whole body on the soft mattress, she asked. "If the other Diana's title is a Princess, what are you?"

It was a challenge for Diana to let Atsuko open up. It was several deep breaths before she answered. "To the outsiders, I am her lady-in-waiting. But truthfully, I serve her more than a female companion. I am her bodyguard—her dame in disguise."

"Oh, that explains why Professor Ursula's disappointed." She said, but her gaze wore a new light. "Surely there's more to that."

Atsuko blushed at the notion. "I can't believe you are now getting the upper hand in teasing me! I remember the first time we met, I tease you nonstop and it was much fun!"

"That was you? The one who stole my first kiss and who insists that she should be my girlfriend? How long have you two been doing that?"

"Calm down, heiress, the pranks had merely started that day, at least we helped you figure out you're in love."

Diana exhaled loudly. "I think I'm more livid with you right now than my other self."

"My deepest regrets for I disagree. My anger towards my other self is far more pronounced. She would have punched my princess by now."

A dark chuckle rose from Diana's throat. "I agree. Akko surely has the tendency to violence when provoked." She recalled the time when Akko learned that Amanda beat her up. Diana's breath came to a halt.

Atsuko looked down at her with concern. "I will stop now," she said. Her voice was like a rock hitting the bottom of an empty well with a dull thud.

"No, don't!" I shook my head vigorously at her. "You must continue the story. No need to hide it from me anymore. There shouldn't be any more secrets between us."

After a moment of contemplation, she nodded.

"Would I get to meet the others?" Diana asked. Her eyes fixed on Akko's mirror.

Harboring inquisitive thoughts of what Diana's other friends would be like in this strange phenomenal world. Atsuko almost flinched under her curious stare.

"Are they not trustworthy enough?"

"It's not that," Atsuko said. "It's just that the lesser individuals who knew about the existence of the earthen world and that their royal princess jumped into another dimension, the better."

"To fool your foes, you must fool your friends as well," Diana whispered.

Then just out of nowhere, Diana saw a wormhole appear out of thin air by the door of the room. She pushed her upper body to sit as Professor Ursula and her childhood friend, Professor Croix stepped outside of the portal.

Professor Croix didn't seem astonished to see Diana as she did. Diana reacted to her approach with calmness as if their encounter was entirely natural. Diana and Professor Croix exchanged no greetings like this had all been prearranged.

Diana stared at her face, and the older woman looked at her with a flickering light in her eyes. Diana just realized her eyes were lighter than everyone's, like the color of turquoise but they seemed sharper as they fell their sight on someone.

She wore a gray top with a black jacket and a tight skirt. She had some bracelets that matched her small gold earrings and flat platinum necklaces. Her face was like a porcelain sculpture with messy short lilac hair fell to her slender shoulders. The older woman was beautiful without a doubt, with the same enigmatic gaze like all the residents of the mirror world.

Professor Croix sat down next to her and just stared. Diana looked back at her turquoise eyes. Everyone was looking at them like they were watching a suspense movie. Diana was going to say something when she started first.

"Whoa, Chariot." Professor Croix grinned, observing her. "You were absolutely right!"

Professor Ursula shared no enthusiasm with her. "Will the plan succeed?"

"Yes," the taller one said, "As soon as she could block out prying minds away from her thoughts."

Diana's stomach did a flip from apprehension and everyone inside the room noticed.

Professor Croix turned back towards Diana with a gentle smile. "Your thoughts are out in the open, it's a sin if I read your mind, but I did anyway!" She chuckled to herself.

"Miss Cavendish, your private lessons should start now." Professor Ursula said. "I expect you have an inhuman intelligence such as our princess."

The temperature in the room was not warm nor it was too cold, yet cold sweat trailed down Diana's cheek. "I shall learn quickly."

Professor Ursula crossed her arms and glanced at her adopted daughter. "Atsuko..."

Sulkily, Atsuko shifted her gaze towards her.

"Don't fail this one now." The redhead had warned Akko's counterpart once more. "You should reconsider your position while you still could." It was perfectly clear that Professor Ursula would end things between Atsuko and her real princess if Atsuko remained unbent.

"Chariot, the poor girl's already traumatized. Don't make this any worse."

And as if it was the last time they talked, she left, her face full of sadness. "I'm not. I'm merely telling her the consequences of her actions."

Professor Croix went over to Atsuko and gave her a tight hug. "I'm here for you, kiddo. I won't let them punish you."

"Bye Mom. Tell _Maman_ , I won't be killed by the law."

"I'm proud of your courage, my dear. And even if the Empress Regent will have you lynched, I will scorch her castle with flames." She kissed Atsuko's forehead and followed her wife outside.

Diana's eyes held with Atsuko's again, and the silence deepened. Flickers of blissful electric currents charged the atmosphere as Akko's counterpart gazed unrelentingly into Diana's eyes. Diana knew the punishment was something big, but she hadn't come to a conclusion that the punishment for Atsuko for leaving Princess Diana was death upon her. Diana's heart swelled up so big inside her chest, she almost couldn't breathe.

"I concur you see auras too." Diana started.

Atsuko chuckled sadly. "It's not like that. Everyone has their dominant aura, which reflects their personality. If I want to make out someone's aura, I have to focus for a few minutes, and it will appear in a mist-like form."

Diana's heart fluttered as she listened to her for she knew what it'd felt like if one is about to break in from terrible sadness but had harsh expectations, where the mind has to overrule the heart. Diana could easily sympathize with Atsuko but the line is drawn between them when Atsuko could be killed by their governess if the Blazing World knew that their Princess Diana was replaced by a fake.

"Kinesis doesn't require mental strain or laborious concentration," she explained easily. "Just simply relax your mind and imagine your magnetic fields spreading out.

Following the instructions, a bright flash burst into Diana's retinas out of nowhere. She couldn't see anything for a moment. It was like the way one would look up at the sun and the brightness attacked her vision. Behind her closed eyes, for some reason, she still saw glowing patterns on a smooth white back of someone with glowing eyes.

Diana dropped her head in her hand and pressed her fingers against her eyelids with the other. During her disorientated state, she felt Atsuko turned to me.

"Are there any uncomforting feelings?" her voice sounded close by. "It's a product of normalcy when a headache occurs, side effects of doing it for the first time."

Diana waved her hand, a normal gesture to reassure her that she's fine.

"Excellent, you are already in sync with your kinesis abilities." She heard Atsuko's voice like a fading tune. "Now I want you to be one with the objects. Try to feel as if it was parts of your body."

Diana had never felt an intoxicating feeling such as this. Not even when she was using magic and was performing the water summoning spell during the Samhain festival, but nothing compares to the intoxication she felt for Akko. The feeling of being in one with universal thoughts was sub par to her feelings for Akko.

"Good, now this time. Close the door of your mind. As I try to pry into yours, do your best to keep me out."

Diana could feel tendrils of thoughts trying to weave its way into her skull and she was given the power to stop them—to block them out. She remembered what her mirror-self told her about their extraordinary powers, she raised her hands and pushed Atsuko's invasion of the mind away.

Atsuko took a step back as if she was definitely pushed away. She was puzzled at first but then a cheeky smile featured her lips. "You are magnificently gifted at magic, Diana Cavendish."

Diana smiled at the compliment. She was transfixed by this strange communication more and more as she followed the instructions given.

Both Diana and Atsuko had fully immense their concentration on the task of learning and teaching. Both had no clue of the new trouble heading their way as loud footsteps echoed outside the hallways towards the princess' bedchamber.

Diana was brought out of training reverie when there was a loud thud at the door. Her heart skipped a beat. "W-who's that?"

Atsuko's jaw tightened, her mind stretching outside the room and figured out who the guests were. "There are only two girls who are allowed to do that."

Diana anticipated, "And?"

"I think it's time you're about to do real training." Atsuko dropped down to her stomach flat on the ground and slid quickly under the bed.

The sound of splat surprised Diana and the action briefly reminded her of a penguin skiing on ice with its belly. Diana began to feel apprehensive at the visitors who continuously knocked on the door.

Atsuko poked out her head and said. "Very soon... you need to block out your thoughts and never let them read you. Greet your friends charmingly, my lady."

Diana's mouth unhinged, she couldn't grasp why it's necessary to hide. "What are you doing?"

"They would not know I'm here if they do not suspect anyone hiding under the bed." She offered a usual vague explanation and then she went back underneath with a groan.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **And here's the new chapter! I hope you enjoy and don't forget to leave a review. It really keeps me going~ (^-^)**

 **Hola! For the Spanish readers out there who would want to read a translation of Mirrored, ravendrex has provided the first chapter on this tumblr blog entitled "** **Reflejado** **":** **post/164701808926/reflejado-capitulo-1**


	18. Chapter 18

Chapter 18

"DIANA!" The mirror versions of Hannah and Barbara thundered as they spread the double doors wide open.

Diana was able to read the situation perfectly. They were the royals— both Countesses by birth—near Princess Diana's age that she instantly grew close upon royal occasional visits. These visits Princess Diana sometimes returned.

Countess Hannah England and Countess Barbara Parker were fine porcelain beauties, their hairstyles were similar to the ones they had during that party in the Hanbridge manor. And due to Diana's practiced kinesis powers, she could hear the rustle of their beautiful velvety dresses and fur coats as we strolled along the glassy avenue of her royal highness' bedchamber.

"Good day, Princess Diana!" Hannah's mirror bowed regally, raising her skirt a little.

"Do you miss us?" Barbara's mirror followed her companion's example.

"Lady England and Lady Parker," A gleeful smile crept up Diana's lips. Even if they weren't the earthen versions, she was still astounded to see them. "What a pleasant surprise."

"We've missed you so much!" The girls wrapped their arms around Diana.

"C-can't breathe." Diana whimpered then they all melted into laughter. She noticed how strange their perfumes smelled and came to wonder if these two are also in a secret relationship.

When the girls had finally released her from their snake-like grip, Lady Hannah crossed her arms. "You've been busy for the past three months, Annie!"

"A-Annie?"

The Countesses looked at each other and then back at her suspiciously. "How dare you forget our secret agreement?"

Diana recoiled internally as her heart started screaming like a warning alarm. She lowered her head, glancing at the bed nervously but no message came from Atsuko. Perhaps Atsuko thought that she would have to go through this mental interrogation on her own.

With an inhale of air, she decided to bet on a wild guess. "You mean the nicknames?"

The girls gave her lopsided smiles.

"Yes!" Lady Hannah said. "Since our last visit, we all came to an agreement to call each other with those silly nicknames when we are alone."

"That was your childish idea." Barbara continued, placing her hands on her chest, faintly gasping with a melodious tune. "How could you forget your own idea, Annie?"

"Oh," Diana chuckled, but inside she's dying of anxiety. "Silly me, I did recall desiring to call you Hannie and Barbie when we're in close quarters."

The girls let out a feminine squeal in mutual bliss. When the squeals finally stopped, the girls invaded her with another difficult situation. "Why are you wearing weird clothing?"

Diana noticed that her Luna Nova school uniform would be foreign to the residents of the Blazing world. She didn't have time to change clothes for they gave importance on Kinesis training. She thought of an excuse. "Professor Croix invented the design, I merely tried it on to see how comfortable and combat appropriate it would be."

"Now that you mention it," Lady Hannah said, warming up to the sight of foreign material. "It is quite lovely to look at. It brings out your curves"

"And not to mention, the cloth's light as a feather." Barbara giggled. "You could move swiftly as well!"

"Is this your chosen regalia?" they both asked, their eyes glittering.

Diana's breath hitched, "R-regalia?"

"Oh, so it's not it?" Lady Hannah pouted at guessing it wrong.

"You are acting funny, your highness." Lady Barbara noticed Diana's trepidation. "Is something the matter?"

"Nothing, it's just that I haven't seen you often. I hadn't known it's been so long since we've all gathered together." Diana knew she couldn't keep this up to even save her life or Atsuko's if she has no materials to study on.

Clearly, the Countesses were not convinced with Diana's assurance. They eyed her keenly from head to toe. "Your highness, are you hiding something?"

A lump of air stuck in her throat, she could feel the hairs on her skin rise up. "I have no idea what you are talking about."

"Interesting," Lady Hannah mused, glancing around the room. She motioned for her companion to follow her.

Lady Barbara tiptoed towards her and lend an ear when the redhead whispered something. With a nod together they pulled something like a rope on air, "Then what is this?"

Atsuko glided outwards, she grabbed the floor, her nails grazing like tacks on a chalkboard while the Countesses pulled her out using telekinesis.

"Atsuko!" They shouted gleefully, fanning themselves with their hands.

The Japanese girl briefly glanced at Diana with a distressed look before frantically standing up to her feet, ready to dodge and escape unwanted flattery, but Lady Hannah and Lady Barbara looped each of her arms around theirs possessively.

"Atsuko! You look ravishing today as usual!" Lady Hannah's face was merely inches away from Atsuko's. "Why do you always hide from us, lady killer?"

"You are so tense," Barbara breathed against Atsuko's hair, "You need to loosen up a little."

All the while, Atsuko fumbled with the sleeves of Diana's uniform, begging for help. The sight made Diana imagine her own teammates fawning over Akko instead of her back in Luna Nova. That was a sight to see but for some reason, Diana's heart strung from irrational jealousy.

" _T-tasukete,_ " she pleaded.

Diana was brought out of reverie when she could tell Atsuko wasn't that comfortable when the girls were fawning over her. And that was something Diana still hadn't fully understood.

"Oh my," an old guilty feeling settled in her stomach. Diana placed a hand on her chin as an idea struck her like lightning. The reason why Atsuko hid under the bed when she found out who her visitors were made sense now. "Now girls, let go of her."

The Countesses listened at her request but they still clung to the Japanese girl.

"Tell them to stop doing it!" Atsuko roared, pushing the Royals' hands from her arms.

"Rude!" the girls complained.

Diana didn't want to add more tension to the room. "Atsuko don't be so dramatic. They just adore you, that is all." She said, speaking from experience when Hannah and Barbara follow her around like lost little toddlers.

"Funny, you said the same thing three months ago!" Atsuko yelled, huffing then walking towards Diana to hide behind her back.

"Now you are just being childish." Diana reprimanded.

"Me being childish? I'm more matured than Akk—" Atsuko nearly pointed out her earthen counterpart when gladly, Lady Barbara spoke louder.

"—Oh Annie! If you want to keep your chosen regalia a secret before the coronation, it's fine." The black haired girl then winked at Atsuko's direction.

The action confused the earthen witch. _Was it a sign of flirting or the sign of knowing their secret?_

Diana figured it should not bother her. Once composed, she featured a sincere smile on her lips. "Let's not make haste now, what's the reason for your visit?"

"We're invited by the Lady Regent to celebrate a party tomorrow's evening!" Lady Hannah answered.

"What seems to be the occasion?"

"She has spared us no details but considering we were invited a day early, it would sensibly mean that you had finally managed to find regalia!"

Lady Barbara nodded her head excitedly. "All of our friends and nobles will be there!"

"Hasn't she told you?" Lady Hannah asked.

"She has failed to mention—" Diana started when Atsuko roared over her speech.

"Perhaps we haven't met with the Empress Regent, your highness," Atsuko said quickly, placing her hands both on Diana's shoulders. "After all, you had just arrived from your tiresome journey. You must be hallucinating."

The Countesses had no reason to disbelieve Atsuko.

"Annie!" Lady Hannah gasped. "You absolutely should get some rest."

The duo pushed Diana backward, Atsuko had to get out of the way. Diana was laid down on the huge bed. Although she has seen telekinesis firsthand for many times, the feeling of being tucked into bed using the strange phenomenon was truly a rare leisure to get used to.

"Fret not, Annie, you won't miss us much." Lady Barbara assured. "Your aunt allowed us to stay in the palace as we please after all. So we'll be strolling around while you sleep a wink."

"As you have suggested, yes I should take my rest," Diana said. "See you at dinner."

"Sounds great," they both said sweetly, giving her a small peck on both of her cheeks and excused themselves to the doors. "We have a lot to catch up anyway."

"Umm yes... Good, see you at the table then." Diana waved her hand.

The Countesses waved back and turned to the Japanese girl. "See you Atsuko!" they said, sending her a flying kiss.

Atsuko's face darkened from repulsion but she stood there defeated, letting the invisible kiss reach both her cheeks. Once their footsteps echoed out, Diana pushed her upper body to sit to regain her composure from what had just occurred, though weird it may be. She'd agree that she had fun.

Atsuko, on the other hand, was still disassociating.

"Well...That was something."

"My princess' friends are too touchy and clingy! Their Earthen versions didn't seem any different. How do you put up with them?"

"I get that you're annoyed but you could just tell them to give you space, respectfully," Diana said, prior to her experience.

"You haven't fully seen how dense those two are!" Atsuko raged on.

"You know what," Diana removed the blanket on top of her and wrapped her arms around her legs. "You should have filled me in before I get more unsuspecting questions like that."

"My apologies, I had no reasons to believe they would barge like hurricanes. Professor Ursula might have done well and informed your aunt about your arrival, but I wouldn't expect she'd make haste on a celebration."

"I see," Diana said, veering off to a musing state. "Princess Diana and her aunt... they must have a close wonderful relationship?"

"Of course," Atsuko's face turned pink while she's thinking of her princess. "She's a pampered royal. Her cousins—the marchionesses—even love her. And through this love, she will be a great ruler."

Diana nodded, slightly envious of her mirror counterpart's relationship with her family. "Mind telling me why the imperial princess searched for an inherited emblem of royalty?"

"Asides from her highness' curiosity towards earthen, another purpose why we went to earth was to find regalia befitting for her taste."

"Was it lost in the earth?"

Atsuko's forehead creased when her eyebrows knitted together. "Ah... my apologies, I was caught off guard by the question. I fear you must be referring to the earth term. Here in the blazing world, regalia means a sacred weapon that serves as tools and treasures and the symbol of ruling an empire."

In one fluid motion, Diana's Blazen companion gestured her arms in a manner similar to ocean waves. A huge golden chest opened at the end of her bed's footboard and multiple rich and silky tapestries were unrolled for her to see.

"You're getting better in your type of magic." Diana complimented.

Atsuko's eyes widened but a sudden guilt crossed her features. "Her highness is an excellent teacher. Losing her proved to be an exceptional lesson and inspiration for me to become better."

Atsuko indeed was gloomy but Diana let her express herself as she examined the Blazing World's history through the tapestries. The previous empresses all had different accessories in their woven fabrics that depict their most valued possession and what occurred during their empire. She saw her mother's—the mirror Bernadette's—tapestry. She was holding a silver sword whose hilt was solely wrapped bandages.

"In the Blazing world, crowned princesses will inherit the throne once the previous Empress has passed away, and must reach a certain age where she has finally decided on choosing her own laudable regalia."

"A specific age didn't matter?"

"As long as the candidate is ready and she is. Celebration tomorrow's night means the Empress Regent wants the succession ceremony settled once and for all. We must do our best to stall it until the real Princess arrives."

"Yes." Diana looked out the window, gasping when the moon started to show itself from behind a pack of grayish clouds. The moon was not a rock but a perfect round diamond. It was fascinating. The outside view was enthralling. The night wasn't as sultry as the day. Diana could feel coolness after dark began to seep in through her clothes. "Had she found worthy regalia?"

Atsuko sighed, went over to the jewelry stand and took a box that looked exactly where Diana placed Chariot's rare premium card back on earth. She slowly opened the lid and showed what's inside. "She had it perfectly made."

Diana gasped at the sight of it. It was unmistakably a long wooden rod with a white snake-shaped handle that wraps around almost the entire wand, "A Cavendish wand."

"She did not steal it." Atsuko clarified. "She had it made on earth while posing as you."

"A wand is used to create magical feats using magic energy that comes from a Sorcerer's stone or a Leyline." Diana mused. "Without being on earth, that wand's useless."

Atsuko was somehow irked. "She had no need for wands to do magic, Miss Cavendish. All she wanted was to have a connection to you."

"Oh."

"Furthermore, an earthen wand may be useless to a blazen." Atsuko offered the containments to her. "And who's to say it's useless at the hands of an earthen?"

Diana got off of the bed and retrieved the magical object. "It looks exactly like my home wand." With a deep inhale, she pointed it upwards. "Metamorphie Vestesse!"

The incantation allowed her to alter her clothes to Blazing World appropriate. Diana looked lovely in her navy blue gown with sheer embroidered sleeves.

"Perfect!" Atsuko clapped.

There was an amused glint in her eyes. It reminded Diana of her own Akko who would sport the same expression whenever she has the proclivity to do spontaneous ideas. Thinking of Akko only brought Diana more unspoken dilemma.

"You know, in social interactions, especially when you are nervous, it helps when you arrive at the scene early. That way you can mentally prepare yourself as you get acquainted with unfamiliar faces and adjust quickly."

"Whatever do you mean?"

"I got no means to alarm you but like the Countesses claims, you will be seeing the Empress Regent over dinner."

* * *

 _ **Dinner in a**_ house full of Blazen Royals was like any normal formal dinner Diana had, except most of the food was consisted of foreign cuisine, and the feast itself was big enough to feed the entire student body in Luna Nova.

Atsuko and Diana spent the remainders of their evening before dinner, discussing matters that deemed worthy for Diana's preparation to pretend that she was the Blazing World's princess over a course of dinner.

Diana sat at the head of the table. Beside her, Atsuko was sipping her wine to ease her nerves when Professor Ursula and Professor Croix came into view.

Atsuko nearly choked on her drink. Professor Croix pulled a chair for her wife to sit down first and gently pushed her back nearer the table and took her seat beside her.

"Luckily the Empress invited us to stay and have dinner," Professor Ursula provided the information. "Croix and I weren't able to ease ourselves if we left you—alone."

"I see the training had gone well." Professor Croix smirked, attempting to break her way in through Diana's mind while pouring some wine on her glass telepathically. "A toast to you," she offered and downed it like a shot.

"Croix please don't drink too much."

"Aww, don't worry _amore mio._ " Professor Croix winked. "I don't plan on getting a headache in the morning. I want to savor tonight with my special woman."

"I knew you would say that!" Professor Ursula said and crossed her arms over her chest, "Never mind me falling asleep on you on the covers then."

Professor Croix bit her bottom lips. It seemed as if they were having one of those couple moments. They would have probably flirted a little more but then there were a few more footsteps that drew nearer towards the long table. Diana saw the Countesses, Lady Hannah, and Lady Barbara chatting up with her cousins, who were given the title of Marchionesses.

Lady Merrill and Lady Maril flashed a genuine glossy smile at Diana when they entered the hallway. Their blue eyes seemed to travel past the table and inspect Diana's head down to her toes. Diana felt a little uneasy under their gazes.

"Welcome back, Dia." Lady Merrill greeted. "Had you gotten some rest?"

"Of course she did! Look at our cute baby cousin, beautiful as a newly sculpted statue." Lady Maril teased. "Nice to see you again, little Dia."

"You too," Diana lowered her face to avoid their eye-contact as if seemingly interested in her meal. She couldn't believe how intimate Princess Diana was to a lot of people where she had different nicknames every time.

The Marchionesses and the invited Countesses finally took their respective seats. Mirrors Hannah and Barbara seemed a lot chipper than earlier as they continued to flirt with Atsuko who did her best to tell them she's not interested. It makes Diana wonder if the mirrors were unaware that the Crowned Princess was in a relationship with her Lady-in-waiting.

Then they heard the sound of high-heels echoed sharply from the hall. Her Majesty Empress Regent Daryl Cavendish floated into view, but Diana kept her eyes glued to her plate as she walked to them.

The Empress Regent was wearing a long white dress that seemed to be knitted with gossamers with a plunging neckline, the dress reminded Diana of a certain divine deity of beauty or a certain spider lady from the mythologies.

"Oh, what a nice feast. An international banquet befitting a multicultural table." she said breezily and sat across Diana. "Forgive me ladies; I may have arrived late on our little gathering."

Diana wanted to roll her eyes upon the mention of multicultural when there was only one woman of color at the table.

"No worries, Mama!" Her daughters replied.

Diana was relieved that a Mexican or Filipino dish of a roasted pig with an apple stuck in its mouth provided her enough cover. She didn't want to face her cousins and the lately arrived Empress Regent who was assigned to sit across her.

"Splendidly the chefs have prepared quite a banquet for my niece." The Empress Regent expertly poured some wine and chose her choice of meal among the selections telepathically.

A piece of bread suddenly turned to ash in Diana's mouth when the woman fixed her gaze on her.

"My dear Diana," Her Majesty, Lady Daryl said as she continued sipping her red wine from the glass. "Had you chosen your regalia by now?"

Diana looked startled but she didn't say anything. The stare the Mirror Daryl gave her was plenty intense. She was sure her heart dropped somewhere near her ankle. Trembling that she might give away her real identity, Diana stared back at her plate.

"She already did," Atsuko flashed a perfect smile back.

"So," the powerful figure in the room put her elbows on the table, "Anything new from Tokyo?"

Diana's stubborn mind rewound to the vivid mornings she used to spend with the one girl she could never forget. Thinking about Akko clearly didn't help lessen the heavy feeling that kept taunting her heart nor lessen the drumming heart beat within. She let out a quiet sigh before putting up a façade.

"It's the same old, your majesty." Diana shrugged, stabbing her beef steak with a silver fork. "I should have visited Atsuko's home country earlier. It was easy searching for my very own notable prized regalia."

"Oh, so it's true? You've found the perfect regalia." Lady Daryl said with a proud smile showed up on her purple lips. "I didn't expect you two to get back together so quickly. Nevertheless, I had, by now, sent out invites. I took the courtesy of inviting your beloved friends earlier."

"The invites were much appreciated, your majesty." Lady Hannah said, placing a hand over her chest.

"We arrived as soon as we had received it." Lady Barbara added.

"I'm glad you've arrived for my niece." Lady Daryl nodded her head at them, pleased and averted her gaze back to Diana. "Tomorrow evening! We shall celebrate for your chosen regalia and two days henceforth, you shall be crowned Empress and I shall be relieved of my duties as your Regent and finally resort to my old title as I should have been from the start—a Duchess."

Diana dreaded that she would be crowned instead of the real Princess Diana of the Blazing World.

"A toast!" the Empress Regent beckoned everyone to raise their own glasses with her.

Everyone gladly raised their glasses except the ones who keep Diana's little secret, who took their time in slowly processing the information and raised their own.

Diana begrudgingly raised hers as everyone at the table cheered for her, "A toast!"

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Here's the new chapter! Thank you for being patient with me in my updates. And to my Spanish readers, you're welcome! The translation's still ongoing but the chapters 1 and 2 are already posted here in by RavenDlumine called the "** **Reflejado Traducción"** **.**


	19. Chapter 19

Chapter 19

The whole night Diana slept soundly. She didn't like the fact that she did because she couldn't let herself be vulnerable in the foreign environment.

"Nine Olde Witches!" Diana yelled, almost having a heart attack when she saw Atsuko leaned upon the farthest wall, sitting with a katana in hand.

True to her word, Atsuko watched her, protecting her from unwanted visitors or possible assassins. In return, she was exhausted when morning came, falling asleep in a random awkward position like a royal guard who's feet collapsed.

Diana was about to let her sleep some more but when lifted up from the bed, Atsuko's eyes flung open, immediately forming a stance ready to unleash her blade.

"You're going to give me a heart attack, Atsuko." Diana held her chest in shock.

"Sorry," she rubbed her eyes.

"You didn't sleep?" Diana asked. That was a more important matter to discuss rather than finding Akko's mirror sleeping upright on a cold glass floor.

"A few winks," Atsuko murmured. She picked up the note from the desk and handed it to Diana, gesturing her to read it.

" _Atsuko,_

 _There has been quite some time since we've last seen you, idiot! No signs, no letter, no nothing… I would have thought you'd gone missing and had screwed up while protecting the princess. Had I not received the Empress Regent's invitation, I could have sworn you were silently lynched. I realized that you are still_ _harboring dangerous feelings towards your sworn princess, as_ _odd as it may be of you. But the girls and I are forgiving so we're expecting to see you and the Imperial Princess, tonight at the party held at the palace. You know, just like in the good old days when we take a break from training and we'd sit 'till morning talking and drinking the worries away. Don't you dare evade us! I presume that you won't be accompanying me and the girls in any misdeed but being present should do for the lack of action. There's no need to reply… Damn, just show yourself KAGARI!_

 _Your best friend, (who will severely stab you if you won't show up)_

 _Lotte Yanson_

Atsuko watched her as Diana curiously read the content and after she had finished it, The Japanese girl raised her left eyebrow as though asking for her opinion—or orders.

"So Aunt Daryl had sent out invitations which result in your friends into sending you a letter?" Diana queried, not knowing exactly what to respond.

Atsuko nodded with a solemn expression. Diana waited for an explanation but the lady-in-waiting's head was orbiting to dreamland.

"Atsuko?" she called for her.

Again, there was no reaction on the Japanese girl's behalf. Atsuko just stared at a nonexistent point on the wall, not being able to make a proper sentence to alleviate the tension that was growing denser between them. Diana did not understand Atsuko's silence and her lack of emotion. Atsuko did nothing and it slightly worried her.

"And this is bad because?"

"They can't know about the earth world." Atsuko was brought out of reverie, she fiddled with her fingers. "You know there are rules when traveling other worlds!"

"I don't see the need for order when ten or more earthen knew about the mirror world's existence."

Atsuko placed her hands on her hips. A shadow fell over her crestfallen face.

"Unless..." Diana reminded herself that the Blazing world's strict on their rules and a crime that Atsuko has committed will indisputably get her lynched.

"My friends are like me—skillfully trained dames. Lotte, Sucy, Amanda, Jasminka and Constanze are better than me; surely they'll realize what's wrong. I was only assigned to the Princess because of Professor Ursula. Also, I should remind you that for huge occasions and public events, the Empress Regent hires all of us to be your protectors in disguise."

"I see," Diana understood the gravity of their problem; she stood from the bed and held Atsuko's hands to stop it from quivering. "They are attending tonight's party, right?"

"Of course," she replied while running her fingers through her hair. "I miss them sometimes. It would be good to see them. They're my friends; I grew up with them and they've been there for me in times when no one would have. I think Lotte took my absence personally because I never messaged her or the others that I'll be gone for three months. There's really no excuse on my behalf. I should have at least messaged them before my princess and I left for earth."

"What kept you from it?" Diana asked as she unfolded the piece of parchment again to give it a second read.

"I don't know…" Atsuko spoke, quite intrigued about the reasons why she had not even written to any of her friends since she used to do that every week, "Lotte surely believes I'm in love with the princess, but—" she paused. "Who knows?"

Diana blushed and then scanned the note again, trying to find the part where Mirror Lotte mentioned the reasons behind Atsuko's sudden estrangement. But there were no sentences to indicate that; yet, Diana knew that Mirror Lotte wrote it between the lines.

"Atsuko, I need you to be completely honest with me. It's been bothering me since I got here. Doesn't anyone know that you and the Princess are—"

"Stars no," Atsuko said and Diana was stricken by sadness. "We planned on keeping it a secret until she is crowned Empress. The law of our glass states that warriors must not love for love is the death of duty. Emphasis on the part where dames couldn't fall in love and marry the person they are sworn to protect."

Diana's eyes widened at the twist of fate. "You mean, it's not because you're both girls and one is royal and the other is not?"

"Diana Cavendish," despite being sleep-deprived, Atsuko has the energy to roll her eyes. "Seriously, those problems are so 18th century."

"My apologies, I am not fully acquainted with the rules of the glass." Diana sassed, crossing her arms. "So your plan from the start was: keep the relationship a secret, accompany her while she finds valuable regalia, and let her become Empress. Thus, she can change the silly rules of damehood so you can profess your love to her and marry her."

Diana noticed the bags under Atsuko's round eyes just now when stared at her directly. "That sums it all up, yes."

"And since your friends harbors suspicions," Diana processed the information, attempting to fix the current problem for tonight. "I have to act as if the love is unrequited."

"Can you do that? While still pretending to be the Mirror version?" the shorter girl asked, uncertainly.

"Atsuko," Diana ticked her tongue at the roof of her mouth. "Acting that I'm not in love with you is not an act at all."

Atsuko nodded, saddened once more. "Shall we head over outside then?"

"Socializing with the Royals drains me," Diana said. "Can't we just stay inside? Tell them I'm still jetlagged?"

"Sure, I'm a little tired myself." Atsuko then lay down on a couch and said, with a yawn. "Ring the bell if you want the maids to hurry up with your breakfast."

There was much more thing she required rather than breakfast, "Atsuko?"

Atsuko had dozed off instantly. She laid there like a lost bunny, in need of someone to hold her. Diana felt her heart sinking in a type of sadness like she had felt that day when she lost Akko and everyone else back home on earth.

Diana knew it was best to let her sleep. Spinning on her heel to head towards the huge glass bookshelf, she marveled at the scrolls, tomes, and manuscripts that were created with the use of gold and silver material.

"Diana?" Atsuko reached out for her, already on the state of lucid dreaming. "Don't leave me, my love."

Diana craned her neck back to the sleep talking girl, confused that Atsuko's voice emanated such despair like she had never witnessed it. She figured that she too emitted that kind of aura for she had missed her lover as well.

* * *

 _ **Akko held onto**_ Diana's wand. The one she dropped before she was sucked into a portal that led to another world. She held it tightly, the same way she held onto the Shiny Rod when she found it and kept it until she could return it to Chariot.

Their departure to the North Pole with her friends and Professor Ursula rolled in when the brilliant sun ascended above the dark horizon.

"Luna Nova's young witches," Headmistress Hoolbroke said, seeing them off. "May the Nine Olde Witches smile upon you today as they guide you through your journey. We wish you the best of luck to complete your mission and for your safe return."

Professor Ursula, on the other hand, looked unsettling and her eyes were dimmed with worries even if she had prepared various necessities for their voyage in case they needed them with the Headmistress' help.

The witches walked up the ramp to their vessel and some leaned over the railing.

"You've really outdone yourself, Constanze!" Akko giggled. "Stanship 2.0's the coolest ship yet!"

"Damn," Amanda placed both her hands behind her neck. "I just hope we don't have to use the Japanese ala Transformers inspiration feature."

After giving admiration towards the ship, they went back to carry on the work that must be done. Lotte's eyes were studying the map while Constanze took the liberty of steering the wheel. Jasminka and Sucy stood behind her.

But without further delay, they sailed through the river that stretched towards the city. When they got a little farther from the academy, Akko spotted Professor Finnelan and the Headmistress with their brooms, flying along to see them off.

Professor Ursula waved at them in reassurance. The academy's authorities then watched warily from a distance as the Stanship plowed away, taking them to the sky.

Their ship began sailing ahead towards the leyline with no delay. This time, the turbulence was fine for they carry no salt or pickled plums much to Akko's dismay. Travelling on a leyline using a flying ship has its perks, especially for Akko who can't fly well and others had to keep an eye on her while she practices.

"Which direction are we sailing to, Captain?" Akko said, standing at the railing of the prow while the sunrise drew closer.

Constanze blinked in disbelief at the title addressed to her, then resorted to blowing a raspberry. She merely looked straight ahead, shrugging.

"Greenland's that way," Lotte said, pointing North East. She and the rest of the wayfinding team had been staring at maps all evening.

With a nod, Constanze pressed a button. From below them, the floor unhinged. There emerged seats that Constanze quickly installed so that each person had to man a station for a safe flight.

The witches went to their seats, securing their seatbelts and they all had goggles on, similar to the ones Constanze has. Once everyone was safely tucked into their seats, the German witch then sped up the flight. Akko's face somehow wavered at the speed as she tried to hold onto the railings. The entire ship seemed to be sleek and slim like the point of a knife, cutting through the magical waves of magic.

And soon the Stanship crew smelled the first whiff of salty breeze from the ocean. They were high above the cotton candy clouds as it hit their faces like condensed water.

They arrived at Greenland in no time with such a sight. Akko's bun swayed over to her back, threatening to slip away from her hair as it flailed mercilessly to the wind.

Annoyed that all of these times she never had to retie it, Akko sported a grumpy face while the rest looked around in child-like wonder. Akko finished her signature bun, allowing herself to enjoy the view.

They stood above the blue waters, overlooking a fjord topped with grasses so green. There were no cities visible in this area like any other old settlements that were decided by the governments to remain untouched for their cultural preservations.

A six-year-old Akko would want to go out and explore, despite her mother's advice to stay put. She would want to venture into the forest, or submerge underneath the freezing water of the sea, or heave above the clouds. But Akko hadn't outgrown those feelings. She still craved for adventure, for excitement, for the feeling of adrenaline rushing through her veins.

She cautiously reached for a cloud above her. The minute her hand touched it, the puff dissolved into water. In her disappointment, she heard Mirror Diana giggle. Diana's counterpart had been staring at her all day and Akko would have blushed if she was the real one, but she wasn't her.

"Oh, my!" Professor Ursula fixed her glasses back up to the bridge of her nose. "What a sight!"

Constanze pressed the button where everyone can remove their seat belts and enjoy the view. Everyone instantly looked over the railings.

The old leyline indeed were remains of an ancient church's arch window as Lotte described it. But nothing could prepare Akko for the real deal. Her eyes went wide out of sheer amazement. She was happy, though at that point she could hardly understand why.

"Someday, I'll fly across the world with Diana," Akko whispered to herself.

"I'm here with you." It turns out, the mirror princess heard her.

"Eh?" Akko gasped. "But you're not her."

"Oh!" Mirror Diana said dreamily. "You have to specify, you know."

The old settlement was made of granite fieldstones. The stones were carefully laid and fitted at the narrow strip of land at the head of a fjord. It has partly collapsed, mainly due to the fact that it was built over a graveyard.

The color of the skies and the ocean reminded Akko of Diana's mesmerizing eyes. She was about to go into a silent grief when Amanda's loud voice blocked her ears.

"Wow, we're here." The fiery American said while she looked around. "Does this mean we can finally sail on waters?"

Jasminka was about to drop the anchor to the sea when Akko stopped her, creating quite a ruckus. "Flying is better than sailing and much faster too! And besides, we see a much higher ground!" She insisted but then doubt came to overshadow her claims. She turned to the silent princess of another world. "What do you think?"

"I am competent back on the Blazing world but here, I am no more." Mirror Diana sighed, she was standing beside Akko all the time. Wherever the quirky Japanese girl goes, she follows like a lost soul. "This quest is dependent upon you, Akko, if you must really bring the Earthen Diana back and return me home."

"Dears," Professor Ursula interceded. "If I may, staying on the sea is the better option. We might be out here for quite a time and we have to preserve our magical energy."

"Oh," Akko said, disappointed. "That's true."

So Jasminka dropped the anchor down below, making the weight pull the Stanship slowly back into the waters. It was still a mystery to Akko how Jasminka could totally carry and throw heavy weights wherever and whenever she pleased without strength enhancing magic.

Due to her wild imagination, she couldn't help but think that perhaps the Russian girl was ripped and she simply disguised it as a chubby feature. "You know what, Jasminka?"

Jasminka stared back at her while Constanze immediately turned on the engine of the boat and let it sail on the waters for Stanship was built with a modern design rather than relying on paddling and the wind.

"When we get back to Luna Nova, you and Professor Ursula should test and battle your strengths."

"Eh?" Professor Ursula gasped at the fact that Akko knew she was working out during her alone time.

"Sure!" Jasminka nodded to her happily as she took a potato chip from her chips bag and munched on it.

"So umm… it reminds me," Lotte asked, pining the old almost onion-skin map on the wooden table. "Akko, how do you plan on opening the portal in the North Pole?"

Now that was a question Akko's impulsiveness hadn't prepared on. "Oh crap! I haven't thought of that far yet!" She softly hit her head, " _Teehee_."

"WHAT?" the witches bellowed.

"Don't you _teehee_ us!" Amanda yelled as she prowled towards her. "A believing heart won't let us open the portal! We need to do something to activate it! We needed to commit a sin, don't we? Did we bring ourselves some stolen stuff from Luna Nova?"

"Umm... we didn't steal anything." Akko hesitated to tell. Feeling the weight of all the stares directed at her, but she didn't stop herself, "Unless you did."

"How big of a sin do we need to do?" Hannah asked.

"Do we need to follow the example of the seven deadly sins so the gods will be angered?" Barbara continued, finishing the other's thought.

Akko rolled her shoulders, clueless. This caused some of her friends to explode on her. "AKKO!"

"Great!" Amanda threw her hands up in the air, almost surrendering. "We're halfway the Arctic Ocean, following this great plan of yours and now we're here and we didn't prepare or commit any sin worthy of being damned in hell!"

"Not unless you kill someone." Sucy deadpanned from the behind the wheel, retrieving her potions from underneath her uniform.

"Wait! Sucy!" Lotte grabbed the Mushroom Queen's sleeve, stopping her.

"Akko's a fool, I volunteer to poison her myself."

"No!" Akko widened her stance and spread her arms in a defensive mode, fearing for her life. " _Chotto matte_!"

"Umm... I'm not one to intrude in the fun..." Professor Ursula swayed the topic to important matters, perhaps feeling a little lonely herself. "What use is the Kinesis power if not for times like this?"

"True," Sucy added with a snide.

"Sucy," Lotte scolding her.

Everyone turned back to Mirror Diana, but for now, Akko knew she had no clear answers to their unspoken concern.

"Akko," Lotte's gentle voice brought Akko some peace. "We trust you no matter what, but Amanda and Sucy are right. What sin could we commit that a portal would heave open?"

Their gazes returned towards the Mirror counterpart who kept an unreadable and measured face. She merely looked up at the horizon. "Anybody brought breakfast?"

* * *

 _ **Atsuko's knocked**_ out for a solid 10 hours sleep and when she woke, she dashed into the bathroom, preparing. When she got out from a fresh bath, she said the first thing in mind. "Why didn't you wake me up?"

Diana's eyes went over Atsuko's new clothes. It was a long silver tunic with a thin leather belt around her waist, making her tunic seem like it has a partnered short silver skirt. The sight made her look like a royal archer rather than a lady-in-waiting. She partnered it up with a black knee high boots that have a silver floral pattern design along with a deep red hood over her head. She hadn't noticed it before but now she has seen that as an effect of working extraordinarily hard at her training, Atsuko's body is strong, tough, and scarred.

"You needed the rest," Diana said, she had been reading books the whole day.

"Nonsense!" She clapped her hands. "Let's hurry! We have to be there at nine. We've got two hours to be ready. Let me help you get dressed." Atsuko boldly stated once the evening drew near and she ambled towards Diana and began unbuttoning her shirt.

"What?" Diana asked, slapping the mirror girl's hand off her, slightly disturbed at her statement. "No need, Atsuko. I can wear dresses on my own."

"Oh, you prefer to use magic. Suit yourself then," Atsuko declared yet she still stood beside her.

Diana shut the book and stacked it on top of the previous ones she read and quickly retrieved the wand from the jewelry box.

Atsuko wasn't taking her cue to leave. Diana was getting a modest amount of uneasiness. "Is this how you seduced your princess?"

Atsuko's round cheeks turned red. "E-eh? Of course not!" she pouted. "I'm sorry, but my Princess would always let me dress her. You must excuse my old habits, Miss Cavendish."

Diana stared at Atsuko knowingly. Figuring it was her own mirror counterpart who seduced her dame. "At least turn around, I could not concentrate with you staring at me like that. In a heartbeat, I won't hesitate to change around Akko, you might be her—identical in every way but you're not her."

Silence cut through them in the worst way possible. Diana couldn't comprehend why Atsuko became persistent out of the blue. They were having a stare down until the loud hurtful silence and glaring disturbed Atsuko. The brunette nodded solemnly. As requested, she turned around.

It hasn't even been a minute when Diana heard the Japanese girl scream. Turning around from her seat and hiding the wand behind her, she saw Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy by the door. Clad in combat dresses that have an uncanny similarity with Professor Croix's uniform back on earth.

"Greetings, Atsuko." Mirror Sucy snickered.

"Sucy! Lotte!" Atsuko gulped, taking a step back.

Diana's eyes widened. Atsuko was right; they were better skilled than her. She hadn't heard them enter the room at all. Diana re-checked her mask and her shield that protects her thoughts.

 _Good, it's working._

Diana began processing the situation. Hopefully, the two hadn't heard their conversation or it'd be the end of Atsuko's life. She chanced upon the detail that the door was closed. Diana figured that there must be some kinesis related power involved in this. They could have used umbrakinesis, the same way Diana's aunt back on earth uses shadows to travel using magic.

She also wondered why it's seemingly normal that Lotte and Sucy to be sneaking into the Princess' bedchambers, unscathed and without repercussions. Perhaps, it comes with the privilege of being hired to be her protectors.

"How long have you been there?" Atsuko asked, her voice raising an octave.

"Long enough to know that you've been annoying the princess because of your insistent plea for something," Mirror Lotte chuckled, her arms crossed across her chest. "No, don't worry, Atsuko. We didn't hear what your plea to the princess was. I just hope you're not trying to seduce her."

"She might be harassing her," Mirror Sucy noted. Her arms were still invisible. "Judging by Princess Diana's stare, Atsuko's been a naughty girl."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **I promise this is the last arc of the story my dear readers. Once this is resolved, it's done and I'll be off to focus on Checkmate. I know I said a few chapters ago that this story is about to end. This arc is actually part of the plan, I didn't expect that as I write the story it would become longer. The world and the characters moved on their own violation.**


	20. Chapter 20

Chapter 20

She watched Akko looked up at the sky, wishing they would haul the ship off the sea towards it so they could find the gate faster. But then it seemed pointless, for they would merely use up magic energy and gain nothing in the process. Everyone started feeling cold and numb once they reached the icy part of the sea.

Their ship was in the motion and they cruised through gentle waters heading towards the North Pole for what seemed like forever. Yet nothing looked promising to their sight. Only that the temperature dropped and most of the crew did their own things to kill time.

Diana's counterpart smiled as she noticed Akko deepened in thoughts—every single one of them was.

Constanze was hunched down near the ship's wheel playing her game on Stanbot's program. Her face scrunched up in annoyance over the fact that she can't beat the mechanics of her own game. Beside her, Jasminka watched the little German witch play.

"Hmm," The Russian girl mused. "I just realized that I should have packed more donuts now my personal supply's diminishing."

Amanda, on the other hand, had not given up figuring a way to open the gate. She kept babbling to the rest of her team. Spending the whole time conjuring up wicked ideas that would be worthy of a sin that does not involve killing anyone but it wasn't enough to anger the gods.

Among all of them, the green team was preoccupied were utterly obsessed with inanimate objects.

At least Sucy and Lotte had the good sense to be obsessed with something living and breathing. For once, Sucy was not thinking about potions and mushrooms and Lotte hasn't been fawning over Night Fall characters.

Mirror Diana watched the two in fascination. She knew that Akko's been clueless about her teammate's feelings for each other.

Lotte had been avoiding Sucy all day, hiding out everywhere Sucy isn't, pretending she had important business to attend to. A small pang of guilt hit Lotte for shutting the mushroom girl out, but she tried to smother it with the logic that perhaps Sucy was far too tipsy to fully comprehend the consequences of their actions last night before they left to board the Stanship.

On the other hand, Sucy was simply responding to Lotte's actions in the way that she thought wouldn't hurt the Finnish girl's feelings. By avoiding her, Sucy was simply giving them both some time to come to terms with what was obviously a stupid lapse in judgment on their part.

The emotions Professor Ursula and Akko displayed during most of the time were the most familiar. At the sight of their nostalgic faces, Mirror Diana could not ignore the pain from an old wound. There was something about sharing the feeling of missing their lovers with Croix far away researching the cure for Wagandea who-knows-where and the Earthen Diana away on a different parallel world.

Hannah and Barbara were especially the ones that made her enjoy the stay. The two growled out in frustration that they could not find a space away from the others' prying eyes for privacy to sneak a kiss from each other.

Mirror Diana's lips curved upwards. Sometimes juicy things were easily read through a person's body and facial language.

"What are you smirking about?" She hadn't noticed that Amanda came to her with a suspecting puckered brow.

"Amanda, how's the sin plan coming along?" Akko asked.

"Nothing quite," Amanda ran her fingers through her hair roguishly. "Unless we let Hannah and Barbara do their own thing privately, I can't think of a sin worthy among the Seven Deadly Sins."

"Eh?" Akko asked. "Let Hannah and Barbara do what?"

Mirror Diana laughed heartily. "Oh stars, I'm awful. I sure thought I was the only one who noticed that those two are raring to go about it."

"Tsk," Amanda said. "I wonder how Diana managed to ignore her fangirls' hormones especially since they sleep in the same room." She sighed deeply, crossing her arms behind her head.

"Does that mean that we just have to rely on Jasminka's greed for donuts?" Akko asked.

"I don't think a love for donuts count as greedy. She shares her food with us." Amanda retorted. "Besides, she does not eat and eat because she wants to. It's more complicated than that, Akko."

"Uwaahhh I know, I suddenly feel bad! I guess this means I'll let Sucy poison me tonight."

Mirror Diana placed a hand on top of Akko's shoulder. "That won't be necessary, Akko."

Professor Ursula walked towards the prow where they stood. "Akko, how are things going?" she pushed the glasses back to the bridge of her nose. "I might offer some insight into the plans."

All of a sudden, she swayed towards the railing, feeling a little nauseous.

"Uhmm, your highness?" Akko held the mirror girl's cheek and proceeded to feel the pale girl's temperature on her forehead. "You look sick. Is it from the cold?"

"Yes, it may seem so, but not the cold's effect." Mirror Diana gulped air to ease the stinging pain that continued to grow as if a blade darted, apart, deep into her soul. "Excuse me; I think I need some rest."

"Let me escort you inside to take a nap." Professor Ursula offered.

"I'm pleased with your kindness, Professor." She said. "But I can go there on my own." She carefully threaded towards a hammock inside the wooden cabin. She used her kinesis to light a wax candlelight on a lamp, refusing to bother light or fire spirits. The room was lit up and she eyed the hammock hanging on two posts.

Mirror Diana wasn't used to this at all. She was a princess, but she had no qualms to be treated less here. Defeated, she let her head and body rest against the hammock's fabric. The cloth was comforting to the skin and it wasn't rough as she expected. The princess soon forgot both fear and pain as she drifted into a dreamless slumber.

* * *

" _ **We'll take**_ her out of your wing, your highness." Mirror Lotte said as she and Mirror Sucy dragged Atsuko outside with them.

Diana refrained from being tensed, managing a cool and calm exterior. Though inside her heart's clenched upon fear of being caught and cold sweat trickled down her cheek. Diana wondered if Atsuko's more talented than she let others know. For all she knew, it was a ploy for her to make others believe she's unskilled at being a dame compared to the rest but was truly a master of it.

There was no other way that she could think of when she tried to understand what caused Atsuko's uncharacteristic behavior earlier.

Diana relished at the idea that Atsuko made her believe she was unskilled to fool others into thinking she was weak. Atsuko became the Princess' dame to begin with so she's qualified to protect her mirror version. She has the upper hand, to begin with. Atsuko even fooled her—fooled her earthen companion into thinking that she incapable of such feats.

Recalling that night when she caught Atsuko sneaking inside Akko's dormitory room, Diana fought back a smile when she realized that Atsuko's definitely more skilled than she let on. The Japanese girl has a mind of a battle strategist.

"You have my eternal gratitude, Lady Yanson," Diana said. "Now I can finally dress in peace."

Her eyes darted towards the window and to the scenery outside, becoming nostalgic. She wondered how Akko and the others are coming along. Early snow drifted in flurries born from a bluish-gray sky. The glass is cold to the touch, but it refused to become frozen and like the window glass, Diana refused to be frozen in fear.

"See you tonight, Atsuko," Diana said, wanting the girls to know that despite her annoyance, she still needs her dame and for others to see her lady-in-waiting.

Diana quickly used the wand to fashion her dress with a simple metamorphosis magic.

The utter silence around her shattered, not with an explosion but with a click, the knob of the door turned and Diana's head snapped to the sound. Lady Hannah and Lady Barbara emerged through the double doors without knocking, knowing that she would allow the Countesses to come in at any given time of the day or night, regardless of the hours.

"Annie, had you finished dressing appropriately for the occasion?" Lady Hannah twirled around in her new beautiful ball gown.

"Yes, I am," Diana said, hiding the Cavendish wand on her back by the ribbon belt of her dress.

She darted her eyes towards the Countesses to find them frowning. Lady Barbara glanced at her from head to toe. "You are done?"

"Yes?" Diana said uncertainly.

"No!" Lady Barbara placed her palms on her cheeks in horror. "There is something missing in that look!"

Diana wore an ice-blue silk dress like a rush of cool water. The bodice was embroidered with hundreds of tiny crystal beads in a complex pattern of flowers and it shimmered like the scales of a fish. Despite the heavy work of embroidering, her dress seemed to float over the floor. "Girls, I look fine."

"No Annie," Lady Hannah insisted. "As your best friends, we deem that look totally incomplete, but no worries! We are here to help you pretty up more."

Diana sighed. "Am I not supposed to be there at exactly nine?"

"You are the star, Annie. You can be late." Lady Hannah said. "What do you think, Barbara?"

Lady Barbara held her chin in deep contemplation, "The hair!"

"Oh right!" Lady Hannah held up a nearby brush through an invisible force while Lady Barbara pried open the closet to look for a bigger jewelry box.

"Are you thinking what I'm thinking?" Lady Barbara sneered, her eyes crinkling playfully.

Diana gulped about what is to come, but then in less than 20 minutes, Diana's hair has been combed and braided with gems in the fashion of the crown that the Mirror version of her should wear—an intrepid reminder that she is the future Empress.

"Oh my Annie," the Countesses squealed. "You look so beautiful!

Diana looked back at the looking-glass and shuddered at the sight of her, perfect, cold and, sharp, a queen in bearing. The Countesses also wrapped a necklace in the shape of a diamond cobweb with a great diamond at its center, and the jewels blazed with an unearthly light, shedding a pale, cold glow over her face.

"Shall we head out, your highness?" the Countesses curtseyed.

"Yes," Diana breathed at the sight of her. She was glad the Countesses were there with her since she does not know her way around of the palace. The mirror girls lead her to the hall.

It helped Diana ignore the fact that every step took her deeper into the palace, and into soaring walls. They stood beneath a dozen chandeliers with crystal lights carved of flame. Glassy tables and heavily cushioned chairs placed along the walls. Lady Hannah and Lady Barbara looked like they could not wait to have their moments. Their eyes blazed at the thrilling sight. The three of them were standing in the palace's large beautiful ballroom.

A gallery of live orchestra performed by musicians of the Blazing-world was at the end of the hall. Same like that evening parties that were held in the Hanbridge mansion, women and men of all shapes and sizes twirled around to classical music, but the symphonies played were foreign to Diana's ears.

"Princess Diana," Lady Hannah addressed. "Shall you join your family on the dais?"

Diana's eyes flashed towards the dais on the right side of the ballroom where the Empress Regent and her daughters were enthroned.

"No, I fear that I prefer to roam around than be rooted to one spot."

The Countesses looked at each other. "This is actually the first time you decided not to do so, your highness."

Diana stopped dead in her tracks. "I do?"

Lady Hannah nodded. "You were always the prim and proper lady."

"No matter how much we insist you come around with us!" Lady Barbara added.

"Then I suppose," she said. "I desired a change of pace." She gasped at the 10 feet ice sculpture of a Beatrix Cavendish set in the middle of the dance floor.

Blazing residents of the higher-class mingled around the hall. All carry crystal goblets with liquid like ruby, gold, diamond, and starlight but there was no silver for silver liquid reminded people of the deadly poison. Diana read it from the books earlier that there was once a time when a rebel exchanged the sweet drinks with actual mercury and the unfortunate guests who drank it all died.

Once the guests saw Diana, each one fervently greeted her left and right. Diana was used to this kind of small talk and faint praises so it all went to her as a blur, her attention focused on the place and saw the lofty ceiling was intricately carved and inlaid with gold.

Diana's eyes darted back and forth, on edge and on defense. Searching every face and every shadow for opportunity or familiar faces back from earth—signs that would say that the other Earthens had successfully infiltrated the party with the real Princess Diana—or even an impending danger.

When she saw Atsuko and her friends—both red and green team—who all wore beautiful blazing gowns with their respective colors. Her eyes found Atsuko's for the longest and shortest of moments.

Atsuko excused herself from her friends who continued to keep their eyes on her. Lady Hannah and Lady Barbara squealed when they saw Atsuko approaching, and definitely looped their arms around the poor Japanese girl.

"Atsuko, you look rather dashing!" Lady Hannah's eyes fired up with desire, her cheeks rosy.

"Any clothing will bring out the best of your features!" Lady Barbara snuggled her.

"Girls," Diana said, noticing Atsuko's pleas. "You are suffocating her."

Atsuko grinned awkwardly as the girls released her from their grips. "Thank you, your highness. May I talk to you for a bit?"

Diana nodded, keeping her stoic face and unreadable mind in place. The Countesses had their faces widen in pleasant surprise as Atsuko pulled Diana along towards the fruit table.

Once they reached a certain distance, Diana waited for Akko's mirror to speak but the Japanese girl kept her head low. She did not intend to be distracted at the ice sculpture with various fruits gathering around it and the cold vapor emitting from the ice onto the table surface.

Taking a deep breath, Diana crossed her arms. "Whatever you are plotting in your mind right now, I'd advise you to confide in me."

Atsuko finally looked up at her. Her red eyes glittering with an emotion that Diana knew all too well for she always saw it on Akko's every time they were sharing a lover's tryst.

Diana straightened up when Atsuko reached out to touch the jewels around her neck, against her skin. The warmth that had flooded through Diana when Atsuko had touched her twisted and her cheeks flamed.

"These are worth more than a fortune." She said. "You look beautiful but the dress does not suit you." Then she moved away, stepping back and crossing her arms, and gave Diana an appraising look. "It looks like it is suffocating you."

Diana's finely shaped eyebrows rose in an arch. "I appreciate your concerns about my breathing means inside a blazing world's ball gown, but I must say, I could say the same to you."

"Sorry, Miss Cavendish," Atsuko cleared her throat. "I'm just appalled by the sight of you. You look very much like her; I thought for once she had finally returned home."

"Care to share your whispers to the royal highness, Atsuko?" Mirrors Lotte and Sucy arrived next to their Japanese friend.

The mirror green team hovered behind them and that was the first time Diana saw that Amanda could be fined and reposed asides from that wild amaranth hair that she insisted on wearing upwards. Diana could not distinguish what difference Mirror Constanze and Mirror Jasminka had to their Earthen counterparts as of yet.

Atsuko's forehead creased. "I am merely telling her how beautiful she is."

"You find it necessary to drag her all the way here just to tell her what she knows all her life?" Mirror Sucy snickered.

However, Mirror Lotte was not convinced, though she had no reason to claim her distrust so she let it go. "You are indeed beautiful, Princess Diana."

"Ah, there you are, Princess." Professor Ursula and Professor Croix wove through the crowd to get to them. "How come you're not with your family?"

The dames in disguise bowed their heads to their newly arrived professors. As if on cue, the rest of the Mirror dames excused themselves to get to their positions, ready for defense in any given attack.

"Oh," Diana almost stopped, confused and then answered, to hide the quick rush of nerves in her belly. "I simply needed to speak to Atsuko before I get up there with them."

"I understand." The redhead professor replied while her lilac-haired lover downed the two glasses she brought with her. "Have you prepared a speech, your highness?"

"A speech?" Diana repeated.

"Why of course?" Professor Ursula said, her eyes widening in spreading fear. "You are to tell us what your it is. Hasn't Atsuko told you about it?"

Atsuko gulped. Her original plan, tentative though it was, had been forgotten.

Everyone could feel at the moment of Atsuko's silence was a thick, burning anger inside Professor Ursula but she dissuaded the flames as she pinched the bridge of her nose while exhaling. "I apologize for the short notice and inconvenience, your highness," she said. "But in a few minutes, you are about to have a speech to explain your regalia to us."

All sorts of questions erupted inside Diana's brain but the only question that came out was: "What?"

Professor Croix cackled. "I smell trouble. Do you think you could open your mind to let _mi amore_ tell you what to say out front?"

Diana's jaw unhinged at the suggestion. She just learned how to close her thoughts from prying minds but opening her mind to one person while impeding other people to read her was too much. Before Diana could express herself, the Empress Regent began in a voice accented with the round vowels of a Concordian to all who were gathered.

"The years of my final reign has come to a close. We all knew one day that the crown shall return to the rightful heir. Tonight, our crowned Princess Diana will show us her chosen regalia."

Diana's shroud of courtly manner threatened to fall away as the attention called to her, but before she can say or do something truly damning, Atsuko shifted just so, her arm brushing hers. Diana saw the changed expression on Atsuko's face and she took it for nervousness.

"Truly everything will be fine," Diana cooed. "I won't let any harm come to you."

Her words brought Atsuko back to that moment, standing at the edge of her life. "Easier said than done," Atsuko whispered back.

Professor Ursula gripped Diana's wrist hard before she could leave and whispered in her ear. "Open your mind to me and I will tell you what to say."

The Empress Regent emitted an aura of coldness from being too impatient. With her golden hair swept up beneath a jeweled coronet, her eyes sweep through the rest of the court, making her intentions clear. "Shall I personally invite you to stand next to me my dear niece, her Royal Highness Princess Diana?"

The crowd burst into a whispered conversation about the missing princess until Diana stepped up the dais near the throne for they all lauded in pure praise. Diana dared not look back or around less she loses sight of what was essential.

The Empress Regent raised her hand to quiet the crowd. She stepped forward and took Diana's arm, whose face was downcast. "You seem to be preoccupied, my dear."

Diana leaned toward her aunt and kissed her on the cheek. She was particularly not thrilled by the mirror woman's announcement, but she had to act like she was.

She was standing forward now, tense and silent in front of the whole crowd of strangers though they bear the faces of familiar people. Diana felt the breeze on her skin bring a rush of blood to the surface. Nervousness started to overwhelm her too, searching for Professor Ursula's face among the crowd. She began slowly opening her thoughts to let one person inside her mind. She waited for the transfer of the script of her speech to her head, but there was none. A few single seconds felt like a hundred years in waiting. Nothing else was happening.

The mirror professor mouthed her words, Diana could easily read her lips.

 _Open your mind, I can't get in._

Diana gasped. She thought for a fact that she did. Her face contorted into a mask of indifference to hide the dilemma struggling inside of her. The guests who were listening to her speech all waited for her to speak and her spine shivered, feeling the eyes of the Royal family staring at her full of impatience.

She tried to open the door of her mind once more, with a goal to let one particular person in. The door to her thoughts creaked slightly open and she could feel Professor Ursula attempting her way in when a sudden presence wormed her way inside her mind as well.

Her eyes darted to look for Atsuko, figuring it was her, but it wasn't. Atsuko no longer stood where she was when Diana left her side.

Atsuko was nowhere to be seen.

Diana's heart turned heavy when she could not spot the familiar long lustrous brown hair anywhere in the crowd. She saw the mirrors Lotte, Sucy, Amanda, Jasminka, and Constanze but not the Japanese girl. She missed her Akko terribly, the Earthen Akko would never leave her like this.

The threat of an unknown person inside her mind creeped her out and Atsuko was the only face in the crowd that could help her achieve a reposeful aura but she was missing.

Her heart thrummed inside her being. Both Professor Ursula and the stranger acknowledged her fear. She blinked, blanking out her thoughts. She could not afford to get caught right now.

"I am Diana Cavendish, your rightful Empress." Diana gasped, her mouth opened on its own accord and the voice that escaped her lips were hers, but the words were not her own making. "Tonight, I shall tell you the secret of my far-flung journey of searching for my regalia."

* * *

 **A/N**

 **I'm back! Thank you for all the support so far! Let me all send you some high five if you're all cool with that. Please comment and review so I'll know what you guys think of all this mess I'm writing about.**


	21. Chapter 21

Chapter 21

The princess was sound asleep when Akko walked in the door of the cabin. Akko paused to look at her, taking in the peaceful face, the blonde curls that fell over the white brow, and the small hand curled into a soft fist on the coverlet.

Akko knew she had developed concern for the mirror girl, not just because of the striking resemblance or the fact that the Princess is a doppelganger from another world but because a friendship bond was formed over the course of days. Akko's lips curved into a smile as she crossed the room and set the plate of food and medicine for sea sickness down on the bedside table where an ordinary candle was light up from a lamp.

"Your Highness?" Akko said.

Slowly, Mirror Diana's blue eyes blinked open. They widened suddenly at the sight of Akko, still not used to the sight of her lover's face on another girl.

"We just had dinner and you weren't there. So we checked on you and were still asleep. You're lucky Professor Ursula knew to bring medicines for possible sickness. Also, Jasminka said I should bring you dinner! Hungry?"

"Akko, I must remind you to refrain from addressing me by my title. 'Mirror Diana' will suffice." She said in a croaky voice and tried to rub the drowsiness away from her eyes.

"Oops sorry," Akko ruffled her brown hair with a lopsided grin.

Mirror Diana was infected with the shorter girl's cheerfulness and returned her smile. "How humbled am I for all of you to worry about me."

"Come on Mirror Diana, even though we started out as enemies, you're like a family to us now."

"I'm pleased you all think so." Mirror Diana placed a hand over her chest as if it had swelled up in warmth.

"So… if you don't need anything else, I should get going." Akko said, heading towards the door when she turned back to her once more, "Oh, before I forget."

She looked up at her expectantly.

"Mirror Diana, doesn't it bother you?" a question mark raised above her head.

"On what Akko?"

"We've been circling the Arctic sea for hours and hours. Sucy has run out of mushrooms to experiment on me, Lotte says she's done rereading nightfall. Even Jasminka is worrying her last donut might not last her! I was just wondering if you thought of a way to sin. I mean we tried many things already." Akko stared at the floor with a long face, she started to kick some dirt. "We don't even know what to do next! Had you figured out a way to open the portal?"

Mirror Diana sat there silently for a long moment, but at last, she spoke. "Do you have faith in me?"

"Why did you have to ask that?" Akko asked. "Of course I do."

The mirror girl smirked. "Let me rephrase that. Do you trust me when I say that the gate will open tonight?"

Akko gasped. "Why? What did you do?"

Mirror Diana looked at Akko with cold sweat; then there was some kind of a cold fog between the two of them.

" _Oy?"_ Akko had to elbow the blonde girl in the ribs to bring her out of her reverie, causing the mirror royal to groan in pain.

"All right, I shall tell you." Mirror Diana motioned for Akko to come closer and she did while sporting a whimsical smile. "As you all knew by now, in the Blazing World as dangerous and powerful as our kinesis were, prying heads open and unspooling people's thoughts are literally illegal."

"You mean it's forbidden. To break it means you will suffer a punishment."

Mirror Diana nodded at Akko's simplified version of her speech.

"I don't think people will still stop reading other people's thoughts. Take me as an example!" Akko huffed. "In Luna Nova, no amount of punishment's going to stop me from stealing tarts from the kitchen."

"That's true which is why we are all taught how to shield our thoughts as well."

"Doesn't that complicate things?"

"It does, Akko. So to counter the innate desire to read someone's thoughts, the rules of the glass discouraged us to lie about our own thoughts. So if you love someone, express them. If you want something, get them, if you are hurt, you tell them why. Honesty is praised and lying to oneself is frowned upon. So it is quite a big deal that Atsuko and I had been keeping secrets of our love."

"Rules and laws are a pain in the neck!"

Mirror Diana gave a disheartened laugh. "True. It proves that neither world—earth or blaze—is perfect."

"Gahhh! My head feels dizzy from all this information. It's like when I read a whole book of Alchemy for a test!"

"Akko, we value the secrecy of both of our worlds—to prevent further wars and chaos, do you reckon it's best to have our memories of each other erased after all this?"

"Why?" Akko's eyebrows rose, hurt rooted inside her chest. "I'd never let you make us forget! I won't forgive you if you do! Memories and experiences are what make us who we are!"

Mirror Diana blinked at Akko's sudden outburst and merely shrugged. "Forgive me, for I had a sudden existential crisis."

"I don't know about that," Akko said.

"Let me tell you a secret." She motioned for Akko to come closer. "I did the sin myself. For the sake of Atsuko and your Diana, It's worth the risk."

"What do you mean?" Having heard of Mirror Diana's mischievous plan, her maroon eyes widened at the realization. "Ehhh you did what?"

Mirror Diana giggled at Akko's clueless face and repeated. "Hours ago, I learned all your secrets. Sure we are on Earth but I'm still a Blazing citizen and reading minds all at once are sinful."

Akko's heart hammered inside her, her face flushed, remembering the thoughts that engulfed her earlier.

"And I learned how you want to ravish Earthen Diana with kisses."

"Hey!" Akko punched the air with her fist, her cheeks reddening the same shade as her team color. "You know... you can be quite awful if you want to."

A strong compulsion surged through Mirror Diana when she reached a handover and touched Akko's face. "Once this is all over, I will miss you greatly, my dear earthen. Will you miss me so?"

Akko couldn't find a word to respond, but she understood, slowly putting her hands down and looked away from her. "You're about to become Empress in your world, yet your world doesn't know that you're dating my counterpart."

The truth hit Mirror Diana's chest like a bowling pin. "You know why."

" _Hai hai,_ because of the rules of glass blah blah blah," she said. She did after all showed Akko via kinesis about her whole life.

"Do you want to sleep a few winks, my dear Akko?"

"Well, I guess a little won't harm anything." She said, drifting to sleep as soon as she lay on the hammock.

* * *

 _ **Earlier that**_ evening, Atsuko's sad eyes landed on Diana. The spitting image of her secret royal lover was clad in a blazing ball gown, making her slightly frightened, as if she had seen a ghost. She had to control her overwhelmed emotions from spilling out in gushing waves.

She could remember it all clearly. From the first time she met her princess, Atsuko had known that the connection between the two of them was different than what she felt with the others and it naturally became something more.

It was like; Atsuko knew there was something special about her. The feeling was unexplainable. For days she found no words to define them. It was a question her mind mused over frequently. The mystery does not get clearer by repeating the question. Yet maybe repeating it over and over in time will shed light.

She came to her most trusted professors—who became her second batch of parents. Trying to make her inquiry as vague as possible, so as not to raise suspicion.

Professor Ursula and Professor Croix called it the phenomenon of lovers' link—a bond between two people within a circle of energies like creatures caught in a spider's web.

Every time Princess Diana touched Atsuko, warmth bloomed between them. All problems and worries seemed trivial, days got brighter, and hardships became easier. Atsuko found herself waiting for her princess' touch all day, turning the memory of it over and over again in her mind as she went to bed.

Atsuko knew she got it bad for her. Every night, she felt the link between them thickening, ripening: at first a slender shoot, and then a vine that curled around them, strengthening each day.

The day Atsuko got separated away from Princess Diana, the link between them stretched like a gossamer thread. It was still there, thin and long, with no signs of breaking.

And then, reluctantly, she closed her eyes, then fluttering it open again when she came back to the present after her rather long flashback.

"The years of my reign as your empress have finally come to a close." The Empress Regent said with her beautiful royal voice, continuing her speech with a poise that Atsuko failed to listen more of for her jaw nearly unhinged.

She and Diana were caught off guard. Noticing that the Earthen froze in fear, she leaned her shoulder to hers. When their eyes met, Atsuko knew Diana could feel her fear, and it both saddened and exhilarated the lady-in-waiting.

"Truly everything will be fine," Diana told her. "I won't let any harm come to you."

"Easier said than done," Atsuko whispered before Professor Ursula told her that they will be using psychokinesis to solve this.

"Shall I personally invite you to stand next to me my dear niece, her Royal Highness Princess Diana?" The Empress Regent insisted.

Earthen Diana was heading towards the dais and, amidst the upcoming nerve-wracking speech in the next couple of seconds; Atsuko could feel the wind changing.

She turned back to the scenery outside the window, Atsuko could feel her coming. She knows they are coming. "What do I do?" she whispered to herself amidst the joyful crowd, waiting to hear the speech of their new Empress.

About now, it sent a thrill through her. Torn between leaving and staying, Atsuko knew her absolute loyalty was to the princess, but she promised she would stay to protect Earthen Diana.

It took her a long time to notice that Professor Croix had been staring at her. She knew Professor Croix felt it too, for troubles and mind readings came to her like a second nature. The Italian professor was a cunning rebel of psychokinesis when it comes disobeying rules of the glass and she can still stand there, unscathed by the wrath of the gods.

"I see your dilemma, Atsuko." She said, nonchalantly, although leering in the next couple of words. "I do not need to read your mind to see how troubled you are."

"You can sense them, professor. I have to get to them before the others find them." Atsuko stated. She thought she whispered it. For as long as she could remember, she had been sensitive to all the shifting thoughts and kinesis of energy around her, and her years at the Academia had sharpened and honed her awareness of them.

"It is truly troublesome." She grinned, knowingly. "Now the question is: who's your top priority?"

Atsuko snarled at the older woman. She was not one who enjoyed being teased. With lungs full of air, she has come to a decision then stared at the French woman. "I'm off, _Sensei_."

Professor Ursula looked at Atsuko, whose face glowed with the energy unfurling through her. Professor Ursula could have chastised her, for the Professors at the Academia had taught them from day one that such a display of power was reckless.

Professor Ursula nodded grimly. "Are you certain?"

Atsuko stared back at her Professor who served as a mom all her years. "She would understand my decisions when she learns why."

Professor Ursula's eyes widened. Even Atsuko refused to believe herself. It was the equivalent of lighting a signal fire on the tallest mountain to announce one's presence during a war. But at the same time, Professor Ursula understood why Atsuko had done it, for it was written clear as day on her face: It made her whole.

Powerless to stop her, Professor Ursula resorted to staring daggers at her beloved.

The Italian woman acted like she's unperturbed by the glaring. "I shall accompany you, Atsuko."

Atsuko turned one last look at the Earthen Diana who had just arrived by the dais before leaving.

* * *

 _ **Akko awoke**_ that airless night, gasping.

She heard a sharp knock on the side of the door, causing her to fall off the hammock. Her clothes were damp with sweat from a dreamless nap.

Professor Ursula barged through the door and didn't question why Akko sprawled onto the floor. "Roll call outside, now!"

Mirror Diana had finished her meal an hour ago and hoisted Akko up. They proceeded outside to find everyone gathered by the prow, except for the green team who remained in the upper deck. The pale moon had cast its silver-light through the sails.

Everyone stared at the scenery they were approaching towards to. The sky changed its color, what once was bluish-white turned swirling gray. Even the deep blue sea turned darker and darker. They all held their breath and watched warily around the dark water as they sailed in silence.

"Any idea what's going on?" Amanda asked.

"I'm no meteorologist but," Lotte said, uncertainly. "Isn't that a bad sign?"

"Great," Sucy mumbled. "At first nightfall, the Stanship will be hit by a strange nasty storm."

Lotte and Barbara stared at the grayish-pale witch for her word selection.

"Why the hell is a storm deciding to suddenly show up?" Amanda said. Her voice laced with more anger than fright for she saw the storm as an inconvenience.

But the water already started to tremble. Akko could feel it through the wooden board underneath their feet. Akko's eyes widened as she saw the raging storm coming their way. "Uh..." she pondered. "What's the procedure on upcoming storms?"

As if on cue, a wave knocked their ship. Everyone got thrown around the place: Sucy and Lotte grabbed a rope of the sail to keep their balances. Constanze and Jasminka, who stood above the deck, held on to the might of the steering wheel. Hannah and Barbara grabbed onto each other, screaming frantically. It was a mystery why the two hadn't fainted yet. Mirror Diana suddenly felt awful again, fearing she might throw up, she steadied herself with the rail while Professor Ursula rolled around the deck.

Akko felt like a feather in the wind. She hadn't anticipated it and got knocked in the guts and went flying into the rail. The crash knocked the air out of her lungs. A dry groan arose from her throat as the pain shot through her.

"AKKO!" Everyone screamed as they all staggered towards hers.

Professor Ursula jumped from the deck, displaying her acrobatic skills in the process. "Akko!" her professor cried in panic. "Are you alright?"

"Ehh?" a constellation of dancing stars burst into her vision. "Ehh I'm fine. I've fallen onto trees and the ground far worse than this."

Everyone exchanged wordless glances. Professor Ursula pointed her wand upwards, yelling over the now pouring heavy rain and strong currents. "Metamorphie Vestesse!"

Their uniforms turned white—already in the magical upgrade of an incredibly tough armor clothing and have regenerative properties and stronger than any human-made armor.

Everyone panicked as they ran amok; young witches kept bumping into each other like blind people. Hannah and Barbara just froze in paralyzing shock. Professor Ursula took command; she was the only one who was able to function well amidst the raging storm. No matter how she raised the volume of commands, everything was in a wild state of chaos.

"It's just one storm!" Akko stood despite the cold. Her voice commanding as she yelled through her shivering bones and chattering teeth. "We're witches! We're the force humanity has against the face of calamity! If we can defeat the magic missile, we can defeat a storm!"

"There she goes again with her pep talk," Sucy remarked as soon as everyone came to their senses, fueled anew. Regardless of being a dunce, Akko had the uncanny ability to lift up their hearts.

Akko turned her face away, ignoring Sucy. Out of nowhere, several whirlwinds raged across the area, uprooting everything on the water's surface and tossing waves around in madness.

Constanze struggled to keep the wheel from turning but she got knocked off. A powerful wave almost hurled them off the board when the ship stood right on end. Another wave brought water to splash around the deck, washing away some of the backup oars and masts.

Jasminka used what strength she could offer to steer the Stanship back to the right course while Sucy and Lotte went over fast towards Constanze to see if she bumped her head on the floorboard or not.

"Aargh!" Amanda yelled furiously, "Of all times to have a freaking snowstorm on the seas!"

The Stanship crew ran in every which way to control the ship. Amanda cursed a few times, which brought down lightning strokes from the sky as if the gods found it highly inappropriate. It was only then that they discovered that even witches and a kinesis user were powerless to calm themselves in this dilemma.

Diana's counterpart collapsed, her sickly visage turned another color.

Hannah and Barbara were no help of any sort. "The ship is sinking!" they cried when a massive wave tossed the ship to one side; once again, nearly overturning them for every wave was stronger than the last.

"The ship is not sinking!" Amanda snapped back. "Go to the cabin, if you're such spineless cowards here!"

Professor Ursula cursed under her breath, her adrenaline surging and survival thoughts running amok. Having eight young witches without a source of endless magic, despite Akko's inspiring speech did no good. No one was watching them. No one knows they are in a pinch and needed support.

"Princess?" the French witch went towards Mirror Diana who clung for her dear life in the railings of the ship. "Are you feeling okay? Can you create a powerful barrier around the ship?"

Mirror Diana's lips were purple; she heaved and threw up overboard. "My apologies, but I have a frail body and it does not do well in motion sickness. In times like this, I needed Atsuko, and I do understand that she's not here. My stamina's focused on my kinesis muscles, so I fear I may offer no help. You're on your own."

"SHE HAS SEASICKNESS!" Amanda yelled at the top of her lungs.

"Amanda!" Akko retorted. "Getting mad at her won't help!"

"You're Akko the Chosen One! Can't you do anything?"

Akko blanked out at the sudden responsibility shoved to her. There was no way she could replace Mirror Akko in Mirror Diana's life. They have what lovers do and Akko couldn't possibly serve as a replacement.

Professor Ursula nibbled on her lower lip, weighing her decisions between life and death which hung on a thread while the leader of the red and green teams had time for quarrels. "We don't have time to quarrel. We've got one option left! Use what's left of our magic to sail towards safety!"

Constanze rubbed her head and saluted. Adrenaline rushed through her—her pain forgotten and worked her way to the half of what's left of the magic energy to steer the ship off its course. The little German witch successfully hurled up the anchor and redirected the course of their ship then headed forth to a safe destination.

Upon miraculously escaping the storm, a sudden sheer strong current hauled them off from the sky, as if the forces of nature felt cheated. Constanze was powerless to control the ship; her screams were surprisingly loud than anticipated.

"GRAB ONTO SOMETHING!" Professor Ursula's boomed as the girls screamed and seized onto whatever they can to keep themselves on board.

Lotte and Sucy found each other, tying themselves to the strongest hold of the ship with the ropes; Hannah and Barbara were perfectly safe inside the cabin, although probably shook inside the room. With that said, Jasminka reached out to Amanda and Constanze and encompassed their bodies in her protective arms and managed to stick herself on the floorboard of the ship.

Everything lasted for a brief moment then Akko felt her body yank upwards, rising up the ground. She failed to grab onto something and fear enveloped her whole being. It wasn't a foreign feeling; for it was similar to the ones where she tried her hardest to fly. Now it was different, the gravity hat always pulled her down disappeared.

"WAAAHHHHH!" she shrieked.

A cold hand grabbed her by the wrist, refusing to yield to the strength of the wind. "Hold on!"

Akko immediately held onto the hand with fingers so stiff, they can hardly bend to grasp them. It was getting colder; shivering doesn't begin to describe what her body was doing.

Their world was now spinning and everyone else along with it. Akko had trouble breathing as the air whizzed hysterically around them.

"JENNIFER'S NAME WE'RE GOING TO DIE!" Hannah and Barbara yelled at the top of their lungs.

"Understatement of the year," Sucy remarked.

As Akko was flitting in and out of consciousness, a soft feminine voice called out her name over and over. She felt a pair of gentle hands pulling her down. Although Akko was pretty sure her eyes were wide open, it still felt like a white veil had covered her face.

The wind carried them far. Akko felt water rushed up to her neck, cold like melting ice. The salty taste of the sea seeped through her lips.

Then she heard her friends screaming—she herself along with them—from an unknown flaring pain among the numbing sensation derived from the cold. It was indescribable as if their bodies were swimming in a river of flame and ice.

Tears burst from Akko's eyes. Within seconds, she watched, horrified as the Stanship disintegrated like a burning ash as if hit by a huge thunder, along with her friends and her Professor. Alone in about a few seconds, Akko knew she was next. She watched as her cold fingers disintegrated into tiny coalescing specks, which drifted like wind-blown sand towards the sky.

The last thing Akko saw was her mind engulfing in bright light.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Had a hectic week, thank you for putting up with me.**

 **Terms:**

 **Kinesis - General manipulation**

 **Psychokinesis – Manipulate minds**

 **Telekinesis – Manipulate objects**

 **Umbrakinesis – Manipulate darkness**


	22. Chapter 22

Chapter 22

Scanning along with the coast with Professor Croix, Atsuko stared at the gray shadow that loomed over the seawater. "I'm certain they landed here. I felt their presence."

"Are you that certain? Atsuko, remember that if the real princess did appear, we are not only the ones who could sense her."

Atsuko knew the damage that could be done once the other skillful kinesis users sensed the arrival of a massive earthen ship. Professor Croix meant well by reminding her of the consequences but she wasn't helping her calm her own apprehension.

"Hmm, that reminds me. This is the famed spot where the first Earthen arrived in the Blazing World too." Professor Croix said, unimpressed. "What is with this area that a portal's connected here? It should really look more holy instead of desolation."

The pair didn't see it at first, but it seemed to appear all at once when the thick eerie fog that surrounded the gray coastline disappeared.

The sun seemed too far away beyond the gray cloud. There were neither cries of birds nor the jumps of zealous fishes. The witches' ship narrowly squeezed between the jagged diamond shards that protruded from either side of the coast.

The beach was framed with slick and sharp broken parts of the ship the Earthens used. Atsuko and Professor Croix arrived at the scene late and failed to witness the entrance of the Earthens through the portal to the Blazing World.

"They seemed to have landed perfectly fine." Professor Croix took one look among them for her to know their conditions, even if the ship was broken into two and the Earthen witches were sprawled all over the beach. "I'm going to cast an invisible barrier surrounding them to hide their presence. But I'm not so sure about the others who had already sensed them. You go down there and explain the situation to them."

Atsuko nodded, "Will do, Professor."

* * *

 _ **Akko snapped**_ wide awake.

Everything was confusing: It was weird. The sun was blistering cold and the air was light to breathe. It was so quiet and strangely so. Akko heard no splashing of fish jumping off the water beside the beach, even no squawking of seagulls or tweeting of birds above the blazing sky. They all awoke in a world of prism light as if they had found themselves anchored on a crystal clear island and their ship was in a bad shape.

"Is everybody okay?" Professor Ursula fixed her glasses, eyes blinking to adjust to the unnatural brightness of the sudden landscape.

"I guess..." Lotte answered.

Akko realized that most of her friends were thrown overboard. Mirror Diana, Hannah, Barbara and herself stayed on deck.

"Where the fuck are we?" Amanda screamed as she slammed the surface of the ocean, seeing that she landed in the shallow water. Her tongue had no filter and nobody paid mind for truly no clean words in the language could express their overall mental and physical exasperation. "ARE WE STRANDED ON THE SUN? WHY ARE WE NOT BURNING? IT'S TOO BRIGHT AAAAAHHHHHH."

"Everyone calm down." Professor Ursula gestured. "Everything is just made of glass and the stars are clear as night during the day."

"So… there's no sun?" Akko asked, her eyes still adjusting.

"Perhaps a million stars are the sun?" Professor Ursula said tentatively. "Wait, is that the moon? Is it night time around here? Is this the so-called Blazing World? How did we open the portal, to begin with?"

"One guesses a particular mirror princess knows." Jasminka mused, rocking Constanze who was disheartened at the sight of her Stanship, on her arms.

Sucy snickered, still laying on the sand that seemed normal than the ones on earth. "Nine guesses who."

"Uh… what is she doing? Is this normal?" Hannah's panicky voice shifted everyone's attention to the Mirror Princess who lay on the floor, her eyes ablaze.

"Is she even okay?" Barbara asked, concerned and scared.

The others then approached them, forming a circle that surrounds Mirror Diana, not knowing what was happening. They were getting used to things that a literal bright-eyed person doesn't evoke such a strong emotion.

"Uhh… concussion?" Akko offered.

No one agreed or disagreed with her. They were all in the gray zone.

In crushing frustration, Akko then allowed the air of the new world to protrude her nostrils.

As her mind wandered off to the many reasons why this place made her feel uncomfortable, she heard steps approaching them. She turned around and it was then that she noticed just how beautiful and elegant Atsuko was.

Her mirror version smiled. Akko quickly went over the railing and stepped down the ramp. Atsuko fell into step beside her, and for the first time in a long time, Akko was startled by her arrival. But when she saw her mirror—Atsuko's presence flooded into her. It was like ink being released into water, and it was a relief, for it was a familiar feeling.

"What wave has brought you over the coast beyond your swelling sea, my earthen?" Atsuko asked in a whisper.

"Gee, I don't know!" Akko exasperated, "A freaking storm?"

Atsuko chuckled. "Still, I'm glad you all made it in one piece."

"Where's Diana?" Akko asked, getting to the point.

"Your Diana's preoccupied at the moment." She said with the same refinement like Mirror Diana. "There's an event that needs her presence for now. So not worry for she is in Mirror Chariot's capable hands. Now," she glanced around. "Where is my princess?"

"Well... uh…" Akko hesitated before pulling her mirror up the ramp and onto the deck. "What is she doing? Is this normal?"

The other witches gave way for her to see the unconscious girl. Somehow nervous that despite they knew there were parallel worlds and doppelgangers, the idea was still incredulous.

"Oh," Atsuko was astonished at the sight but then maintained a regal and calm posture. "She's fine. She does that often."

"I'm slightly concerned with what else is normal around here," Akko spoke her mind.

"May I speak with you, Akko?"

"Aren't we speaking right now?"

The others sighed. Amanda placed her palm of her face with a resounding slap, Sucy snickered, her sharp teeth showing, Hannah and Barbara both had their hands on their hips, and the rest played it off with a laugh for Akko's denseness was really something remarkably stupid.

"I meant alone, Akko." Atsuko clarified.

"Ohh," Akko laughed, rubbing the back of her head. She then put her hand on her arm and let the girl with the stronger aura lead her off the path and towards the river, where the water rushed by as it reaches the ocean with the half-moon wavering in the moving surface.

They stood together for long moments without speaking, breathing in the cool night air. She felt him take her hand and press something into her palm.

Like a flash as Akko felt with Mirror Diana. Atsuko shared all her memories to Akko.

* * *

 _ **Diana knew**_ the palace hosted a feast almost every night but tonight's was grander than usual nights. She had never seen so many people in her life that frightened her. And that was something—considering she was a Cavendish. The grand ballroom was swarming with blazing residents that would threaten her once they would all find out she's an outsider, and she felt overwhelmed, for it seemed that a good many of them were staring at her suspiciously.

"I am Diana Cavendish, your rightful Empress." Diana's mouth opened to form words that weren't hers. Whoever the stranger was inside her head, she hoped they were an ally. "Tonight, I shall tell you the secret of my far-flung journey of searching for my regalia."

Professor Ursula now looked around in panic. The Italian professor and their doting Japanese child were still missing in action. She was busy attempting to figure out who was using psychokinesis on the earthen and at the same time, Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy noticed the disappearance of Atsuko and Professor Croix too.

The two were not easily fooled, especially if strange occurrences upon strange occurrences kept piling up.

Diana took a deep breath. "I had a vision the night after the oracle stones called for me to go to find my regalia. I knew that the vision was about this journey, and I knew it was telling me that I must travel to a culture unknown to my upbringing. And that I must take Lady Kagari along with me. She was essential to be a part of it. The vision was very clear, but it was also quite limited. I only saw a magical mirror, a book of lore, a world unknown to us and—her. She was important."

The words seemed to echo in the room, and she heard her own heartbeat thudding in her chest.

"You know that I have duties that I cannot shirk, and I had been behaving well with my duties, which only goes to show that I was prepared to take on the responsibility that this journey would entail and the responsibility I had once I found it. The two of us went to her home country, Japan."

Diana managed not to make a face at that statement. That was a funny lie for neither her nor Mirror Diana even went to Japan as of yet. Besides, Diana knew the true location of their counterpart's voyage.

As she spoke, her voice grew clearer, and her back straightened. Professor Ursula glanced at her with a hint of pride, as if she already knew who was controlling her.

"As we all know, the Blazing World's stronghold and the foundation is kinesis and the origin of our powers still remain a mystery. But we all know that the East held legends of it. In that country, the great expanse of the Glass descends from the Northern Mountains. No one travels into the interior of the Glass, although it must once have been populated because numerous roads and tracks lead into it. Those tracks have long been abandoned, and the Glass is thought to be the home of dangerous beasts and the most powerful of all—witches."

Diana's perfect posture has not allowed her to recoil but a flinch she did. She could see Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy listening in the background. They perked up, noticing the internal struggle, therefore taking all her words in. Like they were afraid that missing out a word would destroy the whole point of the sentence.

Diana kept a watchful eye out for them.

"Witches are defined as people who can harness energy from Yggdrasil. Some scholars speculate that once upon a time, the Blazing World was thick with magic; in addition to beasts, there were powerful sorcerers and witches who did more than brew teas and grounding herbs to calm a child's fever. But as time passed, the magic provided by the trees faded, leaving behind only a faint memory of its power. Some said there was a great war that drove the witches' population away which lasted for so many years that the shape of the land changed."

Diana contemplated at the key point difference of the Blazing World from Earth. This was the information she had not reached yet on the history books provided in the bookshelves.

"Legends began to spring up about kinesis users from the non-magical humans. A famous one states that they were the sorcerers and witches of old who had lost their magic, springing from the Land of the Conquerors, where illusions and spells abounded. But the early kinesis users themselves disliked this penchant for telling tales and insisted upon their own, much plainer history. They reported that they were indeed from Britain, from the lands of the English and the Scots to be exact, and they had come east to spread the wisdom of their empress—Beatrix Cavendish the Affectionate."

Diana lowered her eyes to the ground, wishing the control over her mind would end. Every minute was painful, for it felt like years.

"But all that is mere conjecture; no history books survived to tell the tale. Only a few witches remained from the outcome of the war between non-magical people against the magical people, and their magic was limited to saying the old rites for birth and marriage and death. Sometimes they brewed love potions for those pining for true love, and sometimes the potions even worked. Usually, that was enough to remind the people that magic still lurked in half-forgotten places. But even if magic was so rare it was more like myth than reality, the people of Japan still loved their fairy tales."

For some reason, she could feel the Marchioness gasp delightedly while the Empress Regent rolled her eyes, as always perhaps dismissing any possibility that witches might even exist. But where Princess Diana's aunt lacked faith on an account of need for pieces of evidence, the princess herself would lay all her trust on, because she chose to believe in things that others did not. Not because she wanted to trot out or because she was plain credulous. She just wanted to show that ignorance as blissful as it is can blindfold in such manner as to make people miss the most beautiful and important aspects of life, which for her were those people, that in one way or another helped in balancing the world.

"It is natural for a country so fond of its stories and legends, where the people clung to the memory of magic with a deep and hungry nostalgia; it was no surprise that first ever kinesis users faced a difficult task when they landed in Japan seven generations ago. However, there is also another theory. They say the reason why non-magical and witches ceased to exist because it is said that we—kinesis users—are descended from both witches and non-magical people."

Diana saw the people's reactions. Some raised their eyebrows and some nodded for the theory itself was debatable among two factions of believers.

"That theory states that we adapted to the new environment. Letting us become the Second Generation of Magic users for we don't need to harness from trees to use magic. As a result, we have magic within ourselves. We called them kinesis—that we can use magic without the help of a wand but through merely the power of the human mind."

Everyone had different kinds of expressions as they listened to her tale. All the same, Diana flashed a brave smile at the crowd. In an internal panic, Diana realized that the smile was not even her own doing, it frightened her. She was no longer in control of her own body.

It was peculiar.

 _How much control does she have left over her mind and body?_

"There was so much in our history that was failed to be preserved. If we hadn't burned our libraries during the war, we could be reading books written in foreign tongues. Reading the largest tomes bound in gold, the leather covers stamped with the five-cornered star of the Olde Empire. There is the real world—all our learning, all our experiences, written down fact by fact. But because of the burned libraries and oral traditions, gradually, the idea rooted that magic was merely an old country superstition. The people of Japan, where Akko lived until she left, kept to the old ways. Now, I am certain that all of you must be wondering of such a huge introduction."

Diana momentarily had control over herself. She shifted her gaze: to the left and to the right, down and up. She curled her fingers, trying to feel if her muscles listened to her and it did. There was such a long pause, and Diana herself could not help but worry if the speech will continue.

As if the mysterious controller became exhausted and merely gathered energy, she came back and controlled Diana's being once more.

"I present to you," Diana's voice came out from the organs deep in her throat. "A once product of fiction from the stories we read from books and stories we tell to our children." She retrieved the Cavendish wand tucked behind her dress. "Behold—a magic wand!"

The people delved into a momentary silence as they stared upon the exotic Cavendish wand. Diana could hear her breath accentuating every second she held the wand up high and she could almost perceive the sound of her heart beating frantically in her chest.

Without further ado, she could hear the stranger whisper to her.

 _Demonstrate your magic, Earthen me._

The voice was the mirror princess herself. Diana's face colored at the revelation before having the sudden thought of strangling the princess once everything is over for doing this to her.

 _Scary but understandable._

Princess Diana teased her and gave her earthen version back her own control over her body. Diana forgot for a moment that she was still inside her mind and shooed her away using the shield she was taught.

And because Diana preferred not to be controlled again, she pointed the wand towards the ice sculpture and yelled.

"Ansolew Airo!"

Then the 10 feet ice sculpture of Beatrix Cavendish set in the middle of the ballroom comically moved, scaring some of the faint-hearted residents. The sculpture changed her posture from a meek and motherly posture into one with an authoritative one with open arms pointed upwards.

With baited breaths, a great cheer erupted from the crowd. Everyone applauded at the thrilling story of their future Empress with simultaneous chants such as: "WITCHES DO EXIST!"

The speech was perfect. A surge of pride gushed in Diana's chest for the teamwork she had with her mirror.

The Empress Regent reached out and grasped Diana's shoulder, "Well done." The way she spoke gave her the impression that he had said those words many times before. "I really thought you forgot all about that fairytale dream of yours to find witches, but then in your haste, you proved that they do exist."

With Mirror Daryl's hands on her shoulders, Diana could feel the pulsing of her blood within her veins.

Her lips twitched a bit as she turned her attention back to the attentive listeners. It could be her paranoia but Diana knew that Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy were sourly unconvinced with the elaborate lie.


	23. Chapter 23

Chapter 23

Above them was a city of white stone towers so tall she could not see their roof-tops rose to the clear sky, but Akko's attention shifted when she heard her friends cast a familiar restoration magic spell

"Sosomme Tiextrilla!" Their side of the plan was already in motion.

Once the Stanship was fixed, Constanze took out a controller from her infinite dimensioned pocket and pressed a button, making the huge ship compact into a smaller version of its own. The German witch picked it up from the ground to pocket it.

Then, they all gathered to the Mirrors awkwardly. Mirror Diana still lay on the ground unconsciously, her lover—Atsuko—was merely stroking her hair and face.

"Are you sure about this, Akko?"

Akko stared at her idol. The woman was still beautiful despite her years of stress. "I am." She clenched her fists. "I need you all to believe me."

Akko's eyes meet her friends' with startling ferocity. There was an awkward pause at first until Lotte broke the ice.

"If there's someone who can do the impossible, it's Akko!" She encouraged everyone.

"I guess it's too late for us to reason with Akko now that she has set her goal," Sucy said.

"I guess you're all right." Professor Ursula said, as a speaker for the whole group. "Whatever path you're leading us into, however impossible and dark it may be. So long as you think it's the right one, Akko, we'll follow you and believe in you."

Warmth filled her insides. She did her best to keep it from showing, but a bit of a smile bled out anyway. Her hands found her shoulder, offering her the smallest touch of thanks.

"Don't get sappy on us now, Akko."Sucy chuckled

"Will do," Akko straightened, turning around to face the rest of the witches.

"Can you repeat the plan to us one more time?" Professor Ursula asked. It was still weird to talk to the other version of her beloved student.

"We all need to head to the undercroft where the mirror portal is hidden, quickly," Atsuko said, bent on the knee beside her Princess. "For dangers lurk outside where you all remain unprotected. Once we get there, we have to think of a strategy to retrieve Earthen Diana from the party."

"As of now, we're in a protective circle." Someone mysteriously said from the fog. But the voice was familiar, footfalls getting louder as she came nearer. "They can't sense you right here, but once you're out, you are all exposed."

"Croix?" Professor Ursula gasped.

"I'm her counterpart," Mirror Croix smiled all pleasantly then turned to Atsuko. "I had enlightened _mi amore_ about the plan, Atsuko. She would stay by Earthen Diana's side but it'd be tricky to retrieve her. It's still a party back there; everyone would be curious if the future Empress went missing."

"Thank you so much, Professor," Atsuko stood straight and crossed her arms. "Now, we only have one major problem to take care off before executing the plan. Professor, you don't suppose to have a solution to the mind reading?"

"Why yes, of course!" Mirror Croix raised multiple silver chokers through kinesis into the air. "I'm always prepared. You see, ever since Earthen Diana arrived, I had been working on this prototype that would help future Earthens to block their thoughts upon wearing it, also disabling Blazing residents from reading their thoughts as well."

 _Oh, beautiful._ Constanze signed, definitely awed at the invention.

"It reminds me glazed donuts," Jasminka sheepishly said.

"Why is it a choker?" Akko asked.

"Well," Mirror Croix inhaled deeply, pointing out a forefinger upwards, ready to do some serious explaining. "Asides from the fact that chokers are a fashion statement—sometimes—the device takes the shape of a choker because it's near the applicant's nervous system, located at the top of the spine. You see, the reason why Blazing World people can manipulate people is that of the scientific term 'bioelectricity'."

"The what?" Akko asked.

"It means the electricity on a person's tissue." Mirror Croix said, "The reason why we get sparks, and static. Now, the reason why Earthen Diana can defend herself is that she manually can protect her own bioelectricity, she's gifted at that. But you all can't possibly have the time to practice so this invention can help you. It guards your bioelectricity."

"That seems so complex." Professor Ursula squeaked.

"Well kind off," Mirror Croix raised one choker in the air. "But it's simple once you all have gone through basics. I must warn you, this is a prototype so it's not an example of durability. Now, who wants to put it on first?"

Constanze raised her hand up in the air, along with Stanbot. Akko wondered if Stanbot would need such device. The rest looked at their eager volunteer with a hesitant agreement. But since someone already stood up, the others followed.

Normally, nothing happened at this point, other than a feeling of elation overcoming the anxiety if things go wrong; however, tonight proved to be different.

As the chokers were passed to everyone, Mirror Croix demonstrated how it would work and how to wear it when the sleeping princess stirred and began to open her eyes.

Akko watched as Atsuko's first instinct was to scream in euphoria but she continued to stand there, her breath caught in her throat, and her gaze transfixed on the slowly awakening Mirror Diana.

Mirror Diana blinked as if she couldn't properly digest the fact that she was lying on the sand. She bolted upright. Suddenly, both of Mirror Diana's eyes opened and looked right into Atsuko's, and Atsuko, along with everyone, drew an involuntary sharp breath at the sudden awakening.

And for the second time that day, time became painfully slow as Atsuko's brain attempted to coerce its body into action. "My lady," her breath hitched.

Mirror Diana's lips curled upwards slowly, "Oh Atsuko, how I missed you so." Her body posture was regal and gentle, yet underlying it all; waiting for her lover to make the first move.

"I might get sick," Sucy commented, cutting the thick tension through the air.

Atsuko gulped, looking as if she desperately wanted to wrap on a tight embrace but refused to let emotions take the best of her and came upon a decision to keep their reunion civil.

"Yes, okay, it is indeed touching, very romantic and we have a great plan as well!" Lotte said. "But let me be the voice of caution and fixing flaws. How are we going to get where the hidden mirror is?"

"Yes, how do we get there?" Amanda seconded.

Everyone looked weird as they wore those silver chokers. Hannah and Barbara enjoyed wearing it as they continue to complement each other.

Mirror Diana's smile widened. "I guess you'll have to find out."

"Well then, how do we do this?" Hannah and Barbara asked, eager to be reunited with their team leader.

To everyone's surprise, the three mirrors extended their hands: Atsuko to the red team, Mirror Diana to the green team and Mirror Croix to Professor Ursula and the rest of the blue team.

They all stared at their hands, confused. Then, all of a sudden, Akko recalled the time when Mirror Diana had the same gesture for her when she was kidnapped to help them open the portal.

Frowning, Amanda crossed her arms behind her head and turned her back. "What?"

"We ask all of you to touch our hands tightly." They all said in unison. "And we ask you not to scream on the journey."

Everyone nodded uncertainly but reached for what limb they could hold on to before Amanda could finish her sentence. "Well, let's get moving—"

A curtain of white blotted Akko's vision went over her eyes. She would scream if she could, but then would signal anyone of the mirror world from a quarter mile away of their presence.

Akko nearly screamed despite the plea that they shut their mouth for the air suddenly crushed from her lungs and everything seems to shrink. Akko felt nothing but the tightening world and the warm bulk of Atsuko's arm against her shoulder. Time spun, and everything fell. The ground tipped beneath her feet.

Akko hit the concrete hard along with the others, enough to rattle an already rattling brain. Her vision was still spinning. She had to shut her eyes again to convince herself that she's not spinning with it. Her hands scrabble against something slick and cold—hopefully, water—as she tried to push herself back up. Instead, she fell backward and forced her eyes open to find blue, dank darkness.

The spots recede, slow at first, then all at once.

"What the f—!" Amanda turned onto her knees, throwing up everything in her belly.

Atsuko's hand rubbed her back soothing circles. But her touch made her skin crawl. Amanda spat, finished retching, and forced herself to uneasy feet. Akko's mirror placed a hand on the redhead's shoulder to steady her but Amanda smacked it away.

"Don't touch me," Amanda snarled. "What was that? What happened? Where are we?"

"Careful O'Neill, you're turning into a philosopher." Sucy snickered.

Amanda spat acidic bile at her feet and hissed.

Atsuko sighed, annoyed as a schoolteacher in elementary. Mirror Diana and Mirror Croix looked amused at the sight, "We teleported."

"Teleported, my ass!" Amanda blurted, eyes scanning the room for nearest exits. "We were standing outside a minute ago. Nothing moves that fast. Not even leylines."

Mirror Diana tried her best to smother a grin. "You hit your head when we landed," she says after a long moment, "And passed out."

That would explain the vomiting—and concussion on Amanda's part.

Even if Akko's head was pummeled, yet she had never felt so alert. All the pain and nausea of the last few seconds are suddenly gone. Gingerly, she felt along her skull, searching for a bump or a tender spot. But there's nothing at all. Atsuko watched her examination with strangely focused attention.

"Need help with that?"Mirror Diana asked her, giggling in a way that bells would chime.

"Uhh, no thanks." Akko mentally placed it on top priority on her to-do list to hear Diana's giggle when they all get back home.

As Akko's eyes adjusted to the gloom, she realizes they were in an underground supply cellar—abandoned or forgotten, judging by the sand on the empty shelves.

Atsuko had stopped examining her as she proceeded to sweep her arms back and forth, displaying the strength she possessed with wrenching any sand that was formed at the castle's undercroft. Demonstrating how adept she has been the past few days.

"I have a foolproof plan!" Mirror Croix said. "You know Akko should act as Atsuko and escort the real Princess Diana to the ballroom and retrieve the earthen one back here."

"Are you sure I'm fit for the job? Atsuko can do well as herself. I never pretended to be someone else you know."

"I disagree, I saw your memories that you tried to pretend Diana of your world and failed miserably."

"That's the point! What if I fail again—miserably?"

"Would it be so difficult to act as another version of yourself?"

Akko suddenly lost her words.

"You do know that you have a penchant for cutting yourself short, don't you? Atsuko, Kagari, aren't you an expert in avoiding trouble?"

"You have a skewed idea of me. I always find trouble. I don't avoid it."

But Mirror Diana wasn't listening. She faced the rest and asked, "Any objections?"

After a chorus of disagreement from her friends, Professor Ursula maintained a bold look to the rest, becoming the fierce Chariot who can double-deck a grown man for a moment. "No, I suppose not."

"Akko, are you prepared for the transport once more?" Mirror Diana came next to her. "I promise this time will be less of a nuisance."

Akko stared at her, tentatively. Though she's done a lot worst, trusting the princess of another world was never one of her mistakes. "Umm okay…"

"Akko?" her idol said.

"Yes Professor?"

Professor Ursula removed her hat and her glasses, showing that she's finally taking this mission seriously. "Before you go, don't forget—a believing heart is your magic."

Akko's smile broadened. It was always up to Chariot who can always make her feel better.

But the air is suddenly crushed from her lungs and everything seems to shrink—something less pleasant, the tightening of the world, the spin, the tipping forward through the empty air.

* * *

 _ **Diana's heart**_ didn't find its normal rhythm even after the speech. She kept a vigilant ear and wary eye at Atsuko's friends.

She watched as Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy approach their French instructor. "Professor," Mirror Lotte began. "Something's afoot and you won't tell us."

"Be careful, Jansson." Professor Ursula looked at her dead in the eye. "A secret's a secret. Let it go."

But Mirror Lotte raised her brow, untamed. "I apologize, professor but you taught us to be curious."

"And I'm telling you now to let this one go."

"I am frightfully sorry, Professor,"The Finnish girl said contritely, but the words tasted bitter. "I shall endeavor to be less curious among your affairs."

The Professor seemed mollified."Well, try a bit harder, and perhaps someday you'll be allowed to join in on missions such as this."

"What's the matter?" Diana noticed the tension; her presence silently cut through.

"Oh, nothing, your Highness," Professor Ursula said, the way she could control her anxieties was something Diana couldn't get used to, despite the fact she wasn't the Earthen version she got used to. "We just had a little disagreement and it's all settled."

"It's all but settled." Mirror Lotte snapped, making the French woman give her a narrowed eye look.

Diana's gaze stayed at the Finnish girl longer than intended. Mirror Lotte's another shock she couldn't get used to. But no matter how much they wished to keep their problems a secret, there could be no secrets from unwavering curiosity to a society that can read minds and they are bound to be caught sooner or later.

Professor Ursula waited after Mirror Lotte's attention shifted to another and when Diana was certain that the various sounds created noise upon prying ears, she asked. "Where's Atsuko?"

"On an important mission," she breathed deeply for a deeper impact. "They are here."

Those were vague words composed in a sentence but Diana understood immediately.

This time, Diana doesn't bother to ask. But her lips pursed into a thin line, holding back a torrent of questions.

She obviously knew something's stirring within the castle's vicinity. She hoped that no mistakes were made before it's too late.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Sorry I've been MIA lately. I keep coming up with excuses and I know that's not good. Updates will be really slow.**


	24. Chapter 24

Chapter 24

"Are we there yet?" Akko whined for the fifth time after she fell flat on her face on that newest teleportation. But then her companion decided not to listen to her.

Bored in a life or death situation, Akko decided to play with her breath materializing in the air.

A cold wind passed by through an open window and she shivered. Irritated, she went over where the breeze came from and shut it to prevent more air from passing through. She rubbed her hands together after.

Akko wouldn't have guessed that winter season has finally arrived in the Blazing World. The residents wore lesser clothing, yet the winter was twice as cold as it is on the earth or perhaps Blazing World residents have skin that adapted to this harsher climate. Akko wished she should have worn another jacket on top of Atsuko's regal uniform. She didn't let the cold bother her, as there were more pressing matters to have all her focus on.

"You know," Akko began. "Even if you used kinesis-thingamabob or magic to turn yourself invisible so people won't be surprised to find two Dianas in the area, I know you're there."

She then stared at what seemed to be an empty space. Up until a minute ago, the Mirror Princess was happy to answer some her questions but now, it seemed she lost interest in chatting.

Akko raised an eyebrow. "Did you mute me out?"

Her complaints faded when she gasped upon a spectacular and peculiar view.

The Blazing world was askew somehow; the shadows fell in the wrong places here, or perhaps her eyes simply weren't accustomed to the angles in the buildings and decorations. And the buildings themselves were so strange and exotic, and the glass was too clear to come from an ordinary forge.

Mirror Diana took them down wide, empty halls filled with light. A bead of sweat trickled down Akko's forehead. "Uwahhh, the mirror world was definitely scary."

It's been only an hour that passed; Akko touched the silver choker around her neck that was given to them by the Mirror counterpart of Professor Croix. Smoothing it out, she can't help but feel a penchant for it breaking easily.

But quality isn't measured in this circumstance but quantity. It was a prototype that would help them block their thoughts upon wearing it. As long as it's blending into a mind-reading society, there's no time to make it long lasting.

Hopefully, it would do well on their little mission.

Akko recalled the plan that was laid out. Even if she was the best option to carry out this plan, it was still weird. Her heart was thumping like a phalanx of soldiers marching.

In an effort to find strength, Akko's eyes traveled elsewhere as her mind wandered back to her friends.

"You look like you don't trust that the others can do their jobs." Mirror Diana brought her out of reverie.

Akko stared back at space where the invisible princess stood. Despite ignoring her questions, she replied. "Ehh? I don't know what you read from my face, I trust my friends completely and I have faith in them."

"If you say so," The mirror counterpart said nonchalantly. "Akko, you need to focus on this. Our job is to retrieve your Diana."

"Roger that!" Akko yelled, continuing her stride.

When at last they saw the crystal doors ahead of them, Mirror Diana halted and turned back to look at Akko.

"Some of our people may turn out to look at you, but do not be alarmed."

"Yes, understood!" Akko smiled at the warning. She then pushed herself to her feet, strolling the path.

"Atsuko?"

Akko stopped, startled by the sound of her name on someone else's lips.

"Is that you? By the Mirror! How are you so good looking?"

It was a rare sight. An exact opposite of the brash and boyish Mirror Amanda emerged from the massive door with Mirror Jasminka and Mirror Constanze parading beside her.

Words suddenly materialized in the air, Akko knew it was Constanze.

 _She's always good looking._

"True, where have you been?" Mirror Amanda asked some more. "Your teammates are searching every nook and cranny for you."

Faced with a question from a familiar face but an unfamiliar person, Akko took a deep breath, though her heart clogged. Mirror Diana can't help her give an answer. Not with the choker around her neck.

She didn't know how to reply that and thankfully the question died when Mirror Amanda fawned at the sight of her choker.

"That's a nice choker you have." Mirror Jasminka said, munching on a pickle.

She knew the green team's mirror counterparts from Atsuko's memories. If she can just act like Mirror Atsuko for like a minute, she'll be fine.

"Thank you!" Akko replied with a high octave, very uncharacteristic of Atsuko so she just sped towards the door, leaving the mirrors with a question on top of their heads.

True to what Mirror Diana had warned her, the moment she dashed in the ballroom, Blazing residents waited and watched her. Atsuko was such an important person that she became a head-turner as well. They peered out from balconies, or from beneath, or from meticulously landscaped hallways. At first, Akko gazed back at them and then realized how it's a bad idea.

"Act like Atsuko," Mirror Diana said softly. "She would never be guilty. Even when she did something wrong."

Akko awkwardly smiled back at the people who smiled at her. The pressure of so many eyes on her made her a bit breathless, and after several minutes, she had to look down at her feet, so that she no longer saw them, but continued to follow after Mirror Diana's whispered orders from beside her.

At last, when Akko looked up again, she saw that they were nearing the glittering ballroom of the palace.

"Welcome," Mirror Diana said in a thick voice, "to our banquet."

Akko stood across her, gaping at the spread before her. She could not identify most of what she saw. There was a silver tureen of some kind of fragrant soup; plates piled high with colorful fruits; pieces of bread that were round and baked with golden-brown crusts. There was even a huge ice sculpture of Beatrix Cavendish and loud music cascading through the walls with a foreign tune. The only thing lacking now would be rice.

"Where is she?" she mouthed, afraid to let a voice out.

"Over there," Mirror Diana whispered.

Akko couldn't see where she was pointing but it was like she knew where the direction was. Her eyes trailed to look for a blonde girl and there she is. All in her glory, clad in an enchanting blue dress.

There Diana stood beside Mirror Ursula, looking down at the sea of celebrants. The lights glowed on her skin, making her seem gilded. Akko could not stop staring at her, and she wondered if even tonight, she could control herself from bursting out in a cry for joy and ran towards Diana's arms.

Diana appeared genuinely out of this world to her, like she had just fallen from the sky and was completely oblivious to her surroundings. She didn't fit in that banquet, no more than Akko did, yet she had that certain wistful gaze that set her apart from any other human being that Akko had ever been in contact with.

"D-Diana?" Akko asked, weakly, her resolve breaking upon gazing at her.

There was something about those precious blue eyes, staring back at her with the same amazement reflected in the iris, like in Akko's, which made people want to know more about the secrets concealed behind the magic.

"Go over there to the other side of the balcony, it has a blind spot." Mirror Diana whispered, breaking the connection. "It's my secret space as a child that would aid me when I often hide from my professors and the burden of ruling at such a young age."

Akko nodded, and then followed the directions. She could only hope that Diana got the cue and followed after her as well.

Once she reached the tiny blind spot of the ballroom, she heard a step behind her. Akko turned to see that Diana was standing in the opening of the little private spot and saw the Japanese girl huddled in the cold, where she had been waiting for her.

All of a sudden, Mirror Diana materialized beside the Earthen Diana. The Earthen wasn't taken aback, though her mirror counterpart grinned mischievously—almost wildly.

"Pardon me for suddenly intruding your lover's reunion, but it's best if others wouldn't see your exchange to save my face and Atsuko's. Also, don't stay too long, we need to hurry." Mirror Diana said to both of them. "I trust you know how to escape the crow unnoticed, Diana. Akko, you do well remember the way back?"

"Don't worry about us," Akko replied.

"Reassurance of your wellbeing would be gratifying."

"Here," Diana handed her the regalia. "I have something of yours."

Mirror Diana smirked, retrieving the Cavendish wand she had made, suddenly her clothes shifted to be Diana's dress like an exact replica.

"Ah!" Akko remembered quickly, fishing Diana's wand that she left when she was sucked into a portal. "Here! I took care of it!"

Diana's heart warmed at seeing her old school wand. It wasn't her Cavendish wand, which was too bad, but it was a wand of familiarity. No matter how little the sense was, an old wand she was used to using was better than any other.

"So I guess this is goodbye for the three of us. See you." The Princess gestured some intricate hand movements and her clothes changed similar to what the earthen was wearing.

Although with the same face and the same clothes, the blue dress somehow suited Princess Diana more, perhaps of the cultural aspect of it. They watched as the future Empress exited the area, leaving them to their own heartfelt reunion.

Akko didn't know how many seconds passed before anyone of them spoke but she was sure that her cheeks began warming up.

"Akko, you are nearly frozen," Diana said, and she took the cloak she was wearing and placed it on the shorter girl's shoulders. She also put her arms around her, and Akko's feet and hands burned with pain as she slowly warmed up, both from the cold weather and the jumpy nerves she's been holding up.

Diana put her arm around Akko, and Akko dropped her head onto her lover's shoulder and felt the pressure of Diana's chin on her forehead. Diana stroked her hair and said, "Don't worry, Akko, this is not an illusion or a grand scheme. I'm here. I've missed you."

Akko nodded, feeling the soft cloth of Diana's blouse beneath her cheek. She slipped her arms around Diana's waist and pressed up close to her, feeling the solid warmth of her body.

"Not as much as I've missed you," Akko countered, and then her eyes glistened from the upcoming tears. "I'm sorry I'm late. I did my best to get here early."

"Shh," Diana caressed her chubby cheek. "Its fine, what's important is that now, you are here... by my side."

As they stood together, Akko began to hear the steady rhythm of her heartbeat, and her breathing slowed to match Diana's until she felt as though they were nearly one being.

It was good. Until she realized that they still have to depart the ballroom.

Dragging herself away from Diana took every ounce of courage she had, and when at last she was free and had put a hand's breadth of cold night air between them, she looked up at Diana's shadowed eyes.

It was so beautiful that it made Akko's heartache.

Akko could not stop staring at her, Diana turned to look at her, and her lips parted.

Diana seemed to lean toward her just enough—and Akko saw, then, that what she had hoped for could come true. The space between them hummed. It was the most natural thing in the world when Diana slid her finger beneath the strand of hair that fell across Akko's eyes and tucked it behind her ear.

Heat suffused Akko's cheeks, and Diana drew her closer, her breath a soft tickle across Akko's lips, and kissed her.

Everything focused.

It was abrupt but electrifying, soft and beautiful. When Diana ended the kiss, Akko whined at the lost of contact so she leaned towards her and meet her lover's lips once more, savoring the taste, imprinting it to her memory.

Akko felt every place their bodies touched, and she felt every place they did not. Diana slid her hands down Akko's back. Akko felt the blood singing in her veins; all of her was surging up to meet Diana, who pressed her closer.

"HOLY MORGANA!" The voices jolted them clumsily and one of them bumped against the brittle crystal glass, knocking it off the balustrade to shatter, loudly, at their feet.

Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy stood there, aghast but fire in their glazed eyes.

Akko instantly hated the fact that they didn't turn into rats and ran away when they had the chance.

They broke apart, staring dazedly at the fragments of a crystal window. The lights below were sharp as diamonds. Thanks to the loud foreign instrumental music in the vicinity, a shattered glass wouldn't be a problem to guests.

"What is the meaning of this, Atsuko?" Mirror Lotte roared as she and Mirror Sucy peeked through the hidden corner of the ballroom scandalously.

How on earth they were able to find this hidden spot, Akko doesn't know; but Mirror Amanda did mention earlier that they were searching the place clean for her.

"Oh no," Akko instinctively grabbed Diana's hand for them to flee as she was a master of running away from trouble, but Mirror Lotte who read the situation wrong, stretched her hands toward Akko, the mirror girl's fingers curling as if she was drawing the air toward her.

Akko could feel the currents in the room bending to Mirror Lotte's will. And then, to her horror, the air turned and rushed at her; it swirled around her throat like a thousand scarves, tightening until she had lost all her breath.

Mirror Lotte was regarding her fumingly as if she were merely an unpleasant task to take care of. "I knew you were plotting something Atsuko!"

"W-wait! Release her! I-I can explain," Diana held up her arms in surrender.

"Your Highness, with all due respect, I know you have a kind heart but please spare Atsuko your mercy." Mirror Lotte said. "The law does not show leniency towards sexual aggressors, especially one caught in the act."

"Eh?" Akko gasped for air. She couldn't believe she found herself in this predicament. Days ago, Amanda, Cons, and Jasna caught the mirrors kissing and protectively, Amanda decked Diana. Now, Mirror Lotte saw them and she attacked her.

Reaching her hands up to her throat, Akko's eyes blinked as she began to faint. She couldn't breathe; her fingers scrabbled at her skin, but there was nothing there to grab onto. She mentally scolded herself for not finding her wand.

Akko watched her own hand fly up; it grasped the currents of air that Mirror Lotte had wrapped around her throat and tore through them. It was like ripping a great bolt of silk, and the air fell in ragged ribbons away from her. Mirror Lotte stood in front of her a few feet away with her arm still outstretched. The Finnish mirror looked as shocked as Akko felt.

In that heartbeat, they were equals, and Akko knew she had to act before Mirror Lotte regained her wits. She reached down to her boot, feeling her blood rushing into her fingertips, and drew out a long glass shard on the floor and threw it at her. But there was no time to even hope it would reach its mark, for Mirror Lotte flung it aside with a fistful of energy.

The glass clattered to the floor and slid until it lodged itself in the wall beneath the windows, and then Mirror Lotte began to advance on her.

* * *

 **A/N**

 **Hello everybody! Stress-free for now, so stay tuned. Weekly updates will be back! I just couldn't wait to upload this on a weekend, I got too excited. Someone told me this story has taken too long and had unnecessary drama, well... life is an unnecessary drama. But we all still stick to life, don't we?**


	25. Chapter 25

Chapter 25

Princess Diana and Akko went off to save a damsel in distress while the others cleaned the area and prepared for the summoning,

"Everything is prepared?" Amanda asked, looking at their group's handiwork, she held onto her broom provided by the school for flying.

The witches brought their brooms in case they needed to fly but what they didn't know was that they will only be using it to clean. The place was spotless. Rid of sand and crystals—the mirror world's equivalent of dust and dirt.

The Mirror version of Professor Croix stared at the book's copy and reviewed the steps. "All that's left is Atsuko's blood and Akko's blood mixed on the goblet."

"That sounds metal." Amanda began to move her body to the rhythm of broom dance steps she once taught the group one day.

"I'm disappointed at this place." Sucy sulked in the corner. "There were no mushrooms but at least I found a couple of unusual poisonous spiders."

"Sucy?" Lotte gulped. "H-how would you know if those spiders are poisonous?"

Sucy merely smirked, leaving the question unanswered. It was a great thing that Professor Croix chided in.

"I handed her a book of poisons from our world to keep herself company."

After her speech, Sucy threw a small spider in Hannah's and Barbara's general direction, causing them to scream and hold onto one another.

"Hannah shrieked. "IT'S ON YOUR HAIR!"

"GET IT OFF ME! GET IT OF ME!" Barbara cried.

Professor Croix took it upon herself to save them from the scariest bug of all.

It had been snowing all night, and lighting the fire in the old glass heater was an ordeal that put everyone in a better mood. They ate their supper in silence, huddled beneath old oilskins provided in the undercroft's old storages. They slumped over their food that Professor Croix took from the kitchen to feed the guests.

Akko turned her head just slightly, as though she sensed a presence nearby. She was there again, standing at the door, patiently waiting for the Earthens to all arrive. It has been an hour and a half and her jittery bones couldn't take any anxiety more.

She did what she had to do to ease her tension, walked in circles, cleaned the spots twice, and rechecked if all the objects needed for summoning.

Even though she and her princess had reunited earlier, it wasn't enough to extinguish the flames of passion Atsuko had for her. She's well are that her princess loves and misses her but Atsuko missed her princess more. Yet the stoicism to not to fall back on her promise had kept her strong all throughout this week, when barely waking up had seemed too hard without the shape of her princess' body resting next to her, between the sheets.

When she decided to share her thoughts with her Earthen counterpart, part of her resisted. Wanting to keep her own emotions and thoughts and feelings to herself, but if she wanted the Earthens to survive the harsh World of the Blaze, she needed to bestow Akko that gift of identity.

Akko didn't mean to pry but the fact that Atsuko let her see everything inside her mind—the memories, the feelings, and the information combined—she knew that her mirror counterpart had often dreamed of Mirror Diana, mostly blurry and dark flashbacks of their lives: the tender smiles, the raging giggles, and the way they would always steal a kiss when no one was looking.

Atsuko left the door and walked toward white velvet curtains hanging against the icy wall. There was a silver cord dangling from the ceiling, and as she pulled it, the curtains parted and revealed a mirror. It was made of glass like all mirrors, but there was something different about this one, though Atsuko could not at first discern the difference. All she knew was that she was gazing at the reflection through Akko's eyes, and she saw a beautiful princess next to her.

However, there was an uncanny feeling that overwhelmed her. This time, she felt as though she were merging into the body of the girl on the other side of the castle—the Earthen Atsuko Kagari.

Atsuko stopped in her tracks; the empty goblet she held onto nearly fell to the floor. She formed the name on her lips, Akko with the Earthen Diana beside her, and she felt the presence of both come alive. Despite the cold air, she could feel the sweat run down her spine.

"Professor," she said in a harsh whisper.

Professor Croix looked around sharply in alarm—watching, waiting, and feeling. The look on her professor's face confirmed that Akko was now in deep trouble, a fine line next to be in grave danger.

Atsuko and Professor Croix had a fast conversation with each other telepathically.

 _"How come we can sense Akko all the way from here? Doesn't the choker do the trick?"_

 _"What other reason would we have managed to reach out to Akko's mind when the only possible reason was that she was caught?"  
_

 _"We have to try to go and help."_

 _"For whatever reason? I need to be here for my inventions. And besides, you will only make the rest of the Earthens skittish."_

 _"Then I have to go."_

 _"Lotte and Sucy are nevertheless confused about the situation. They are prone to conclusions and could easily blame you for treason."_

 _"Then what do I do?"_

"Hey," The Earthen Professor Ursula was alarmed. "Is everything okay?"

But instead of acting out and making Akko's friends worry about her, she acted as if everything's all fine and in control. Professor Croix was right, she needed to sit this one out and hope for the best. She had more witches to protect, to prevent an all-out a possible sudden war between witches and kinesis users.

Whether the human race liked it or not, bloodshed and violence was a part of their nature. So when the unknown rise up, the minority threatening to overthrow the majority, the oppressed rising up to their own rights, war is inevitable.

"There are stories about the Great Glass," Atsuko was saying as she sat down on the floor, crossing her legs.

The Earthens all looked at her apprehensively, except for Sucy who was still apathetic.

Lotte was the friendly one and the only person who had courage asides from Akko to approach her, asking. "What have you heard?"

"This mirror is connected to the magic wooden mirror back on earth. It is said in legends that this mirror is a chunk of the most mysterious part of the Great Glass."

Everyone tuned in for a history lesson, but Amanda rolled her eyes.

"The location of the Great Glass was highly debated by our scholars and philosophers. A lot theorizes that the magic it concealed is concentrated in Japan, a lot argued it's here in England and a few would say that the Great Glass is the entirety of this huge planet."

"Is it really important to learn where that glass really is?" Professor Ursula asked. "Everywhere around is made of sands and glass."

"Yeah, what makes that glass so great from the other types?" Lotte asked.

"It is crucial for us, Blazing people," Atsuko said. "To know the mystery that surrounds our existence. It was said to be the last dwelling place of the last witches in our world. We did descend from your kind, only in this parallel world, a different history happened that lead to current events. The Princess herself does believe for a fact that the Great Glass is here in England, but we told the citizens that it is located in Japan to cover the tracks of its real location."

"Why?"

"To prevent its use of power," she said, wistfully. "I've heard that things work differently in the Great Glass. If the intention is true, great magic will be bestowed upon them and if the intention is for wicked deeds, unfortunate things will come. Those people get lost, even if they have a map. That magic goes awry there; rituals go bad—that sort of thing."

They all sat in silence for several more minutes, and then Atsuko stood and walked away. The witches looked at one another in confusion.

"The consequences are really scary, but are those legends true?" Lotte asked.

Atsuko did not answer immediately, and when she did speak, her words were measured. "Every story, I think, has a grain of truth to it. But sometimes, people are misled by what they believe, and they see what they think they should see, not what is actually there."

"That could be said of almost anything in life." The bespectacled girl said.

"That doesn't mean it's not true." Atsuko paused for a moment. "I'll tell you this much. The Great Glass is a special place. It was difficult for me to leave it. Every day I spend away from it, I miss it. For me—for my family—things make more sense when we are at home there beneath the glass."

"Then why did you leave?" Amanda asked. She acted as if she wasn't listening, but she was.

"There was nothing for me to do at home. My family is not rich, and Academy offers a steady wage to their graduates." She knew she was lucky that the Academy had taken her, for her family could not afford to pay for her education. It was a compliment to her talent, yes, but it was also a reminder that she owed the Academy a great debt.

"Why did you decide to become a lady-in-waiting?" Jasminka asked she was munching on some fruits that from the castle's pantry.

"I like action," Atsuko said, a smile in her voice. "I had no talent for other stuff, and my idol, Lady Chariot graduated in that academy."

The witches nodded at the similar story, prompting Professor Ursula to ask. "How old are you, then?"

"I will be seventeen at midsummer," Atsuko replied.

"So you're just the same age as us?"

"I suppose so."

Everyone avoided everyone's stares for a while, sinking into the deep conversation they just had. There was a brief silence.

Professor Ursula met Atsuko's gaze. "Do you think Akko and Diana will come back safely?"

"They will." Atsuko instantly lied.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N**

 **Long chapter this week. Enjoy!**

* * *

Chapter 26

Diana was momentarily frozen. She couldn't believe the events unfolding. Akko was there fighting off someone with the face of her teammate while Diana stood there, terrified. The whole exchange deafened by the loud orchestra and was hushed in between thick curtains so the people on the other side couldn't see what's occurring right under their noses.

Mirror Sucy who stayed behind the offense turned her head just slightly, as though she sensed Diana's shocked and worried presence.

So as Mirror Lotte was about to attack again, that was when Diana couldn't afford to keep secrets any longer, but her decision proved to be rash when she waved her wand, yelling. "Murowa!"

A blast of bright teal energy emerged from the tip and hit Mirror Lotte squarely on the chest, knocking the air out of her. Mirror Sucy was stunned to see her fallen comrade. Rightfully so when their supposed Princess emerged a different wand than the regalia she showed everyone and yelled foreign words.

After a few seconds, Diana registered that she made a mistake; Akko recovered quickly and grabbed Diana on the hand to run for the great escape and leave the vicinity of the blind spot.

To avoid stares and distraction, Diana reached for her wand pointed at the Beatrix Cavendish ice sculpture located in the middle of the room "Ansolew Airo!"

With one mighty move, the sculpture announced its presence of life when she changed pose. In order to salvage what's left of the situation, she hid her school wand.

As Mirror Lotte brought back from her stupor, the Filipino mirror stood next to her. The duo became aware of the moving ice's presence when the residents started screaming with delight from the repeated performance their future Empress did during her speech. They both gaped, slightly agitated at the sight of unknown powers while the guests who didn't know the fight occurring in the midst of joy simply clapped at a showcase of kinesis power.

For a few minutes, it helped Diana and Akko gain the upper hand to slip through the crowd without anyone noticing that there were two Dianas in the ballroom.

But, their victory was limited; Akko's boots slipped and Diana failed to hold onto her tight. The icy floor came rushing up to slam into Akko's hands and knees. She slid and scrambled on all fours toward the wall.

"AKKO!" Diana knelt beside her, hastily placing Akko's arm around her shoulder and hoist her up.

This gave Mirror Lotte the advantage to gather up the energy she would need for one more assault. Her short hair started to rise upwards and the strength rising inside her was like a fever. She came after them, with a vow to put her own hands around Akko's throat.

Diana saw in horror as Akko's delicate neck was pulled. She was about to flung herself to save Akko when something around Akko's neck broke. It shook Mirror Lotte backward like an arrow notched up to the opposite direction.

It wasn't Akko's bones, for the sound was brittle and akin to broken shards. With that leverage and blood thumping in her veins, Diana carried her lover and sped out the thickening crowd.

A couple of running distance later, Diana saw it fit to return Akko to the ground when they got farther away from the ballroom.

Akko was a blushing mess that Diana found too cute and adorable, she found herself unable to function like this.

"Diana!" she whined.

"Alright," Diana said with a pout. She loved the redness that plagued Akko's cheeks.

So in collective silence, Diana and Akko held hands, afraid that they would ever be separated again.

The castle walls were either perfectly straight or miraculously curved. Giant windows, cut into facets that held the light like prisms, climbed up the tallest towers. And every structure seemed to fit into the one beside it like a puzzle piece.

Diana was apprehensive, although astonished that Akko knew where they were going. She figured that Akko was really an amazing person and it wasn't just obvious.

The closer they are back to safety, the more light-headed she felt, and she only hoped that she would be able to adjust to it quickly. So far, though, it was making her feel queasy. Diana was unaffected the same way that Akko was, but she, too, felt a bit out of sorts as they parade through the halls back to the undercroft.

Their run slowed down as they got tired and vulnerable. Even Diana, who had been so vigilant, did not notice that they were slowly being surrounded.

* * *

" _ **Holy Morgana,**_ you two made it. You're alive." Atsuko welcomed them as soon as they arrived at the hiding place, but wasn't pleased when she caught sight of Akko's neck before she changed it back to fretting.

Diana flinched, at seeing her old companion. It seemed that Atsuko and Akko had turned chummy in a span of hours.

"Thanks for not helping!" Akko retorted.

"Why?" Professor Ursula asked. "Are they supposed to not make it?"

"A mere figure of speech," Mirror Croix added awkwardly while everyone else rushed to help the duo. "Let me fix you both up." She said to Diana, moving her hands gracefully from above her head to her toes.

Diana could feel an invisible icy cool sensation healing her aches as she recounted what happened earlier. The others stood there, aghast.

"Thank the Nine Olde Witches you are safe!" Professor Ursula rushed over to them and wrapped them up in a big hug. While Akko was used to the prospect and simply giggled as she wrapped her arms around their Professor, Diana was tongue-tied before she returned the gesture.

"So Mirror me almost killed Akko?" Lotte asked, face white as paper.

"Mirror Lotte has always loved a good reason to give out punishments to me," Atsuko said.

Diana's observant eyes never failed to roam around and catch a few things. She noticed the similar choker around everyone's necks. With a nod, she noticed the curious little choker that Akko wore. She hadn't had the chance to ask about it earlier but now, her inquisitiveness could be addressed.

"Say Akko?" she wondered. "Why were you wearing a choker?"

"Oh, this?" Akko absentmindedly pointed the ornament around her neck. "It's a way for the Mirrors to know I'm not from here, so they can't read my mind and all that."

Everyone started gasping as blood pounded in Diana's ears, pressed on by a rising heartbeat. Her jaw clenched, grinding her teeth together so she doesn't pale. "Akko," she began. "I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but the choker's broken for a while now."

"What?"

Anxious to tell her lover the truth, Diana licked her lips from getting dry. "During your fight with Mirror Lotte, she managed to break it off your neck."

"EHHHH?" Akko frantically searched for remnants of the broken device, what was left on her neck was a small piece. "THEN THAT MEANS SOMEONE COULD JUST READ MY MIND BEFORE WE GOT HERE."

The witches were on the verge of panicking after seeing Akko's dilemma.

"Do you think no one read my head?" Akko asked.

Diana had no good news to say and turned to Atsuko for answers. There was hesitance on her face. Diana knew they were in trouble.

"Geez, Akko... everywhere you go is an adventure!" Amanda cracked an uplifting joke but it merely passed through one ear and out the other.

It was Akko who dared to stare around the undercroft and saw the eyes in the walls.

She stiffened just like a deer noticing she was being hunted. "Diana," she said in a harsh whisper.

The rest saw them. Diana heard her teammates give a little yelp as everyone scrambled to come closer together.

"Woah what are they?" Amanda barked. Constanze was now hiding behind her hips.

Diana continued to stare all around. The walls, the doors, she saw more pairs of yellow eyes glowing, reflecting the light from the bright moon. Every witch reached for their wands at the same time.

"What are they?" Akko asked in a small voice.

"Wolves," Diana said as she began to suspect that these wolves were not entirely ordinary. "What are their purposes?"

"They are glass wolves, bred especially to be extra soldiers outside the festivities." Mirror Croix said. "They might have sensed Akko as an intruder when she lost her choker."

"Can't you give one to me so I can wear one now?" Akko pleaded.

"I don't have a spare."

"Will the circle of protection keep them away at least?" Professor Ursula asked the mirrors.

"The circle is meant to keep you guys invisible to the eyes of others, not—not glass wolves." Mirror Croix said.

"But it's also meant to protect us," Professor Ursula asked, hoping. "Isn't it?"

"Yes," Mirror Croix said. "You should stay within it while they're out there. Atsuko and I surely won't get attacked if we go out there and disable their command like a computer program."

Constanze's eyes sparkled at the sound of techno-magic. Others stared at the empty space after the mirrors teleported out of the place, leaving them to fend their selves with their own devices.

It was weird to see them disappear like that. Even looking at them go poof made everyone sick to their stomach.

Diana glanced at Akko, who seemed slightly ill at the sight of predators. She crept closer to Akko and asked, "Are you all right?"

"Uh..." she said, but she sounded hesitant. "I feel like dying."

* * *

 _ **The witches**_ were in chaos. It has been approximately fifteen minutes since Mirror Croix and Atsuko left them to fix the problem. The wolf eyes surrounding them hadn't decreased or lessened. They were still there—waiting, watching, and lurking.

After giving them a speech that would lessen the hushed tones of worries, her goal right now was dissipating Akko's anxiety.

"Akko, calm down," Diana cupped the shorter girl's cheeks. "Calm down, we can fix this."

Deflated, Akko stared up at her—her red eyes glistened with impending tears. "You know how to?"

Diana nodded and brought out her collapsible one that the school provided and focused her energy. "I read textbooks of the Princess' collections during my free time here. I was certain the knowledge will provide the necessary protection."

Diana's heart raced as her nerves nearly got the better of her, making her hands clammy. She took a deep breath and tried to calm herself. First, she had to find the way in. That was how the textbooks always described it: being sensitive to all the currents of energy around her until she discovered the one that called to her—the one that was her own special path into the unseen world.

Meridians of energy ran through every human being and animal and plant; they lay in limitless lines in the earth and the air like a vast web. Every living thing had its place in this field of energies. The protection shield that the residents of the Blazing World learned from when they were young would reshape portions of that field, reweaving the net into a barrier around themselves.

Diana could do it to herself. That was how she was able to protect herself in this world. If only Diana could do it to Akko this time. Though complicated, she needed to deal with it quickly—the only way to protect Akko.

Every time she thought she had found the way, it slid away from her. She was like a fisherman trying to reel in her catch, but it leaped away from her time and time again, splashing back into the sea. And the wind that had whispered in her ear was everywhere, distracting her. It slipped beneath her collar, tickled her earlobes, caressed her skin in cool, lingering breaths.

It took every effort to ignore it, to focus instead on the elusive thread of energy that had come so easily to her when she did it to herself. But Akko wasn't a stranger; Akko was a familiar face in the unfamiliar world. The thought of her love for Akko helped, and she envisioned it in her mind's eye; she could feel the life of it, pulsing.

And then she had it.

She felt the humming threads of life all around her, the same way magic was back on Earth, and they were different here. There was still something not quite right about them, but they were a thousand times more vibrant than they had been on the green planet.

Diana's cast of protection stopped short when they heard the low growls from the wolves surrounding them. They were practically flaunting themselves now; every once in a while one of them would break away from the walls and come closer as if they warped inside no big deal, either to get a better look at them or to demonstrate how bold they were. Diana counted at least three dozen wolves, though she could not be sure.

The temperature in the undercroft was warm because of the makeshift fire they created. But it suddenly dropped. A quick flash of memory came to her from reading the combat books of the Princess' collections.

Diana inhaled sharply. "Look ou-"

A powerful blast from the doorway threw them several feet, sliding across the hard stone floor before anyone could scramble to stand upright again.

"You can't run from us." An eerie familiar voice roused them from confusion.

The Earthens averted their gazes behind them and saw that Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy caught up to their prey. And the prey led them to the den. But there were also more of them. Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy Mirror green team for assistance. Quickly, Diana took a step in front of Akko and the others, shielding them from the mirrors. She didn't know when she could keep up the charade of bravery.

"There are more of them?" Mirror Amanda gasped; behind her were Mirror Constanze and Mirror Jasminka who couldn't even function at the greatest conspiracy ever.

"Now do you believe our crazy theory?" Mirror Sucy asked her.

"You said there were only two!" Mirror Amanda let out two fingers.

"Your guess is as good as mine." Mirror Sucy replied.

The witches were all still stunned at what was occurring. If Mirrors managed to break through the circle of protection and find them—that means Mirror Croix and Atsuko somehow failed.

"Looking for this, strangers?" Mirror Lotte flushed from anger but doesn't loosen her grasp on remnants of the broken choker. "Took us quite a while to ask help from our real friends," she pointed at the astounded girls beside them.

"Truthfully, we know there was something wrong from the beginning." Mirror Sucy said.

Mirror Lotte's short hair still rose up high like a burning flame; her eyes behind her eyeglass squinted hard. "Yes, at first we thought Atsuko and the Princess were involved somehow, my deductions were proved to be faulty for there are doppelgangers about here. And to our surprise..."

She stared at Lotte with her steely gaze. Lotte has a frightened squeal.

"There's more of you." She drawled.

Diana mentally cursed to herself and rose her hands up in surrender. Everyone else followed her sample. "Let us go, we promise we will leave as soon as we can."

"Strangers bearing the face of our colleagues' requests are non-negotiable." Mirror Lotte suddenly swatted the air as if there was a fly that irritated her.

It was a cue for the glass wolves to attack and everyone fished for their wands.

Being constantly on guard after a sleepless night was a good way to render one's muscles stiff and clumsy, and that was the way everyone felt when the wolves finally moved in. Diana wasn't sure what she had expected, but she knew she hadn't thought they would go after herself first.

Diana was clearly their strongest member.

"Akko, stay behind me!" Diana told Akko when a wolf launched at them. She could protect all of them, she's certain of it. She was an expert at non-verbal offense magic after all.

"DIANA NO!"

She had never used her knowledge of magic as a weapon before, and she knew there were proscriptions against it, which is why Professor Croix has been away. None of that mattered when faced with a slavering wolf. Diana's wand whistled in the air, beaming with teal energy and slammed it into the wolf's shoulder. The beast's snarl turned into a whimper; Diana ripped her wand-turned-weapon out and struck again, drops of hot gold stinging her hands.

When she heard Hannah and Barbara cry out, she was so startled that she almost dropped her wand. By the time she fumbled a spell and twisted in her teammate's direction, Hannah and Barbara were already slashing their respective fire and lightning spells down at the wolves that had surrounded them in a ferocious, snarling wave.

One wolf sank his teeth into Amanda's broom, and another bit into Stanbot's neck, releasing a thick stream of destroyed parts and electricity. Constanze screamed, but she disconnected her wand from her little robot and kept fighting.

Lotte's fingers trembled on her wand's handle as her spirit familiar climbed the tip of her wand and burst into flames. Sucy merely threw some of her prepared potions to attack a group of huddled closed wolves, sometimes burning them and melting them.

Professor Ursula had better luck in defending herself and her students. As she gave the glass wolves a roundhouse kick and an uppercut jab with enhanced magic strength.

Diana's blood pounded in her ears. There was no time to think; the wolves didn't stop coming. She could feel them: They were all hungry with vicious need. They were meant for this—to hunt and to kill—and there was a frightening beauty in their sharp silver eyes and powerful jaws. It was the beauty of a creature fulfilling their exact purpose in the world, being the precise thing they had trained their whole life to be.

Three new wolves decided to gang up on her. With annoyance spread across her features, she used the same spell to make the creatures collapsed. When Diana looked up to find her next target, she saw two wolves yanking Akko's sleeve, she was being pulled away from the group.

"Akko!" she screamed.

Akko twisted to see Diana trying to fight her way closer to her.

"Murowa!" she continued to hit every wolf that tried to block her. Terror engulfed Diana, fearing she couldn't get to her lover in time.

"Metamorphie Faciesse!" Akko managed to wrench herself free from the wolves by turning into the little rodent before turning back into a human once she reached safety beside her lover.

As chaotic as Diana's feelings were right now when it came to Akko, the moment the next wolf leaped at her lover, Diana acted entirely out of instinct, driven by panic. She forced her way into the fields of energy around her.

"Shards!" she called forth the magical energies that accumulated in the area, raising her wand up high, and her feet planted apart. "Become my weapons and strike them down!"

She flung it at the wolves, knocking them down like paper dolls. It was as easy as plucking ripe fruit from a tree. She felt like she had been born to do this. Her entire body thrilled with the power running through her.

All the coalescent of energy that ran across the Great Glass buckled beneath her touch, began to run away from her, howling in fear.

Akko stared at Diana in amazement. Unlike on earth, they would see the energy or blades that strike the enemies down, but on the Blazing Earth, it was invisible. It was as if, Diana was using kinesis—except with a wand.

Whatever it was, it struck the wolves like great punches, and Akko saw one wolf's ribcage collapse, while another's snout was smashed, hot gold blood arcing through the air. Diana's eyes were shining, her hair coming loose from how she styled it at the ball. White light pulled at the ends until they swirled around her head in a black cloud. She looked like she was possessed by something as ferocious as the wolves themselves, and Akko was chilled by the expression on her face.

Diana looked inhuman—powerful and frightening and hard as ice. The wolves outside the radius of Diana's power lifted their heads, looking in her direction. They backed away with deep-throated growls. It was as if a lightning storm had settled over her, and they wanted no part of it. As the wolves retreated and vanished, Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy took a few steps back before staying on their ground.

"What was that?" Mirror Amanda yelled she was now in a crouched position, hiding behind Mirror Constanze's short form.

A genuine shock could be seen in Mirror Lotte's face. "How can a stranger from this world have magic like that?"

"Solely because we are different than you," Diana snarled.

Mirror Lotte's face flushed; her mouth twisted. "That was an unwise decision," she said, as she stood up. "You know that I can't allow you to leave this place alive."

"They are tougher than they let it seem." Mirror Jasminka clapped giddily.

"Let's do it, everyone!" Mirror Sucy resumed a crane-like position as so did the rest of the mirrors.

Tiny sparks and frosts danced before their eyes, flames and ice materialized in front of the mirror girls. They were as beautiful as fireflies in a purple twilight. And then the sparks and frosts multiplied until they were all the witches could see. Professor Ursula managed to cast a protective magic barrier around the girls within her vicinity, except for Akko and Diana who were out of range.

Akko managed to dodge those flames, as she was perfectly agile, but Diana wasn't. The use of the great spell exhausted her to the point that her reflexes were slowed.

Mirror Sucy swung her hand and a blast of frozen ice slashed through Diana's gown, cutting into her leg. Diana let out a scream, failing to create a barrier or a deflective spell on time; she looked down at the scorched flesh and the blood that dripped onto the floor. A curious steam rose from the wound, and the fabric around it curled back as if it were burning away.

Then, with a gut-wrenching scream, everyone called their friend's name.

"DIANA!"

Akko held onto Diana, to keep her from falling. They both knew that the next hit would prove to be fatal.

The mirror girls were serious in their jobs, but at the last moment, someone whirled the Mirror girls around with an invisible force.

"Ladies!" The mirror girls were startled by the sound of fury on the future Empress' lips.

Princess Diana sauntered through the halls, her face fiercely angry, and her dress swirling around her like a tossing river.

"All these racket before my coronation day tomorrow." She clicked her tongue in disappointment. "I must say I am certainly not pleased with the way you are desecrating this holy ground."


	27. Chapter 27

Chapter 27

As any good cook can tell people, there are always rats in the kitchen. The Blazing World is no different. Its cracks and crevices crawl with what the elite would call vermin. Sometimes even trusted bodyguards act like sneaky little rodents.

The Countesses tailed after her, meeting the commotion. Her childhood friends gasped at the scene, especially at the sight of another Diana, and a couple of other doppelgangers at the other side of the roomy.

How Mirror Diana wished the Earthens would have metamorphosed themselves into rodents to escape without any recklessness, but sometimes plans no matter how detailed and put together, could lead to pressure and reckless decisions. Consequently, another set of a plan should commence in action.

Mirror Diana met with the Mirror girls who attacked her Earthen friends in the center of the pavilion. They sized each other up, one devouring the other. Neither wants to be the first to break.

The witches felt the air around them tighten: hot, then cold, and then dry, then clammy. The will of mirror girls around them all become suffocating.

Although mused at the sight, that the Earthen version of herself had just mastered the art of kinesis by harnessing energy from the Great Glass, Mirror Diana was more concerned at the fact that the choker made to protect Akko was broken. It was one of the sole reasons she interfered the fight. The second reason was Atsuko.

Even Mirror Sucy glared at her. Among all of the lady-in-waiting damsels in disguise, the mirror girls in front of her were the best warriors they had—next to Atsuko of course.

So it stands to reason that they had known that the Atsuko earlier wasn't the real one.

"Your Highness," Lady Hannah began. "Do my eyes deceive me?"

"What's the fuss all about?" Lady Barbara added.

The princess stood there, daintily. Ever since she met up with the two, she could not find a way to ostracize herself from them when she felt the air change.

"As you can see, your lady-in-waiting companions try to play hero." Mirror Diana said, her voice etched with poison. "Ruining my plans for a quiet escape from my dear friends," she glanced sideways before saying with a sweet childish voice. "I might have to punish them."

Unexpectedly the five attackers landed on their knees forcefully out of their will, as if there was some silent torture ripping apart their brains. The Countesses gulped, standing there almost shaking.

The hushed voices stopped, and Mirror Diana heard heavy boots on the glass floor, approaching her position. Throwing her hand in front of her, she let frost linger in her palm, prepared to blast whoever appeared in the doorway.

"What seems to be the problem here?"

Mirror Ursula arrived at the scene, behind her were Mirror Croix who looked rattled and had gone through a hasty healing. But there was no sign of Atsuko.

"Lady Ursula!" The Countesses sighed.

"Not to worry," Princess Diana said pleasantly before, raising an eyebrow at her subjects' scraping height. "I merely decided to have a fun little game with them."

"Ah yes," Mirror Ursula rested a hand on her hip. "A fun little game if intervening, I love this game, which is why I'm intervening as well."

The Princess returned her attention back to the two ladies-in-waiting, ridding them of a brain-wracking headache. "Rejoice, my dear girls, you are well protected from my wrath."

"What is the exchange for our lives?" Mirror Lotte asked when she got her bearings together.

She didn't give any answer; she merely stared at her Earthen friends and saw their pale visages. "You ought to recheck the summoning circle if anything was disturbed."

The ones capable nodded. Hannah and Barbara immediately went to the ritual place, a slight hesitation clouded their minds, especially on Akko as a lump stayed on her throat.

A soft murmur caught Akko's attention. Her Earthen version collapsed to the ground and Akko spun around and gasped. Throwing herself down on her knees, and bent over the unconscious form of her lover. Earthen Diana was stirring a bit. A whimper passed her lips, and then her eyes opened a crack to peer up at Akko's face.

"What's wrong with her?" Akko gasped, asking for an explanation.

"The feat she did must have taken a great toll on her." Princess Diana said. "Hurry or else she will be drained."

Akko slowly clasped one of the girl's hands in hers. She swallowed hard. "But I don't know what to do." Her voice broke, and she stopped talking, struggling angrily against the tears that threatened.

There was a pain in the Princess' expressive face, and fear, but her tone was still that quiet calm before it swiftly reverted back to a livid mask reserved for her subjects.

"I know what to do." Mirror Croix stomped through the grounds to reach the sick girl.

"Okay!" Akko said a rush of adrenaline pumped through her system to carry her by the blonde's back and the crook of her knees.

Diana was barely breathing, eyes sunken and lips pale. Constanze and Jasminka worked on fixing the air mattress to place her in.

"She merely overexerted herself." Mirror Croix said, repeating the complicated process of hand waving to patch her up. "I'm going to give her an aura boost to help her recharge faster."

As soon as they were all busy, the atmosphere that surrounded them didn't get any less hostile.

"You mean... that wasn't Atsuko with her?" Lady Barbara asked the Finnish girl assigned to her.

"Who were they?" Hannah asked the Filipino girl for fear that the princess will ignore their questions.

"Curious little cubs aren't you, Hannie, Barbie." The princess smirked.

"I am as confused as I could be as of now." Lady Hannah said, slightly fretful of any outburst of eccentricities or emotional cries from her childhood friend.

"Will we get any more confused?" Lady Barbara added.

 _The solitary thing I am certain of is that even if we assaulted them, we are still dreadfully perplexed at this._

Mirror Constanze replied with her mind to everyone who was allowed to listen while Mirror Jasminka munched on crackers despite the heavy atmosphere.

"Where is Atsuko?" Princess Diana asked the academy's Professor. It was a question that haunted her until she could say it out loud.

"Why?" Mirror Ursula crossed her arms. "Might need all the help I can get to stop you from having a temper tantrum, Your Highness?"

The Princess chuckled. "Have a little faith in me. I am your future Empress."

It was true that among all of them here, she had the best advantage, the years of kinesis training and the mastery of accumulating energy from the Great Glass was no match for the others combined. She was so skilled that the only one who matched her strength was Atsuko herself, although she could be a little dork and exhaust herself to the point she cannot use kinesis magic for a short time period and would revert back to being a kid's first time of using kinesis magic.

So it was natural to surround her if they plan to attack her.

"Very well," Mirror Diana smiled at the prospect. Although it pained her to demand to know where Atsuko was, she kept walking, leading them through the other side of the undercroft where the summoning is prepared to take place, trembling with noise and the sharp smell of magic, and the uneasy stares of the witches.

She could feel Atsuko's teammates and classmates, even her childhood friends, assessing her from behind, even though her eyes are forward. For this reason, she decided to let them know the truth.

Mirror Diana couldn't help her thoughts from wandering. She wanted to go to the round inner court of the castle. The courtyard that hosted a fountain had angels to pour water from their tiny marble vessels. She missed the sight and she would often return there if she missed Atsuko, for the murmur of the water reminded Mirror Diana of that day when she and Atsuko had first kissed, during the first part of their relationship

She did miss being home in the world of glass, and all the familiarity that came with it. She didn't miss being this stern, prideful and authoritative princess for her people. The single reason she came back her was Atsuko. The one she missed the most.

Mirror Diana hadn't seen her in a whole week, which was so odd for her since she used to spend every minute of every day in her company. But now that they had met, their reunion was made to a minimum.

They need to finish the mistake they caused first. They need to save the Earthens they reeled into the trouble. Before they can even properly show Atsuko that she needed her voice, her soothing words to wake her up in the morning, the maroon red eyes that sparkled like a ruby in the silver light of a jealous moon and the sensation of her silky hair after a carefree walk along the castle's halls.

However, Mirror Sucy's cough managed to prevent her from venturing into such a tempting, yet most dangerous recollection that would have certainly brought her on the brink of madness yet again.

"Explain!" Mirror Lotte asked. If she would be allowed to pounce on their future Empress to be without any consequences, she will. "I'll be damned if I follow footsteps blindly."

"Manners, Lady Jansson." Professor Ursula warned.

She opted not to tell about the fact that Atsuko failed to save her life when they first planned to escape earth unscathed.

"Witches exist." Mirror Diana said, her gaze never left the enchanted mirror that was connected to another enchanted mirror on earth, but she knew she got all of their attention. "And these witches—" she spread her arms, gesturing to the girls in uniform, "—are from another world.

She stopped, waiting for their violent reactions. If they were shocked to the core, they were handling it perfectly, but the most aggressive expression that one of them gave was a snarl—it came from Mirror Lotte.

"They crossed the bridge with me. I will tell you more about it, but you all have to make a vow to me to be quiet—a vow unbreakable, one oath to the Great Glass itself for I will tolerate no snitch."

"Good choice," Mirror Ursula commented. Her dark eyes rested appreciatively on the princess. "And I hope you have a good sense to keep it that way."

"She will." Atsuko finally arrived; her clothes were tattered and dirty. Although there wasn't any sign of injury in her body.

"WHAT DID YOUR FRIENDS DO TO YOU?" Princess Diana spat, her blue eyes suddenly reminded them of a blue flame.

"They misunderstood what was happening, I was too exhausted so they managed to defeat me, you get the entire picture," Atsuko said nonchalantly, probably to add to the effect that she didn't want her friends to be punished. "Do not worry, your Highness, I patched myself up."

"And they beat up professor Croix too?"

Mirror Croix raised her hand. "We were ambushed! And on my defense, I survive on junk food on a daily basis so I am weak like a noodle."

Mirror Ursula crossed her arms, disapprovingly. "I found them failing to disable the glass wolves and the girls misunderstood them as being mind controlled by the aliens."

"Aliens?" Amanda asked, her eyes narrowing at them.

With all these commotions going on, Akko merely stood there, with small bites and scratches from the fight minutes ago, more worried about Diana than herself. And that was something. Akko hadn't registered her mirror was staring back at her.

"Akko?" Atsuko had to snap her fingers to remove the Earthen from her train of thought. "You're injured too. Let me help you."

"Ehh?" Akko let out a whine. "You don't have to, and besides, it's my fault why Diana ended up like that again." She said miserably, still deep in the throes of self-hatred. She brought up a fist. "Take my blood already so we can summon the portal."

Nobody scolded her. Or even agreed to do what Akko insisted.

There was silence. Atsuko wanted to speak, wanted to comfort the girl, but the words wouldn't come. Instead, she gave her a fist bump, to which Akko was surprised with.

"There's no sense of hurrying. Your Diana is weak. She needs rest and the last time we followed a strict time schedule, you attacked us and the position we stood at the magic circle was changed."

Akko rubbed the back of her head. "Sorry."

"We desire for it not to be repeated." Her mirror said. "Which is why we need to sort things out while you two rest."

"Us two?"

"Sorry about this, you are being too stubborn." was all Atsuko said before she struck her on the head.


	28. Chapter 28

Chapter 28

Akko woke with a start, her breath caught in her throat, and her hands flying to her body as if to make sure she was still all in one piece. Letting out a long sigh of relief, she looked around her only to notice that Diana was lying on the floor next to her.

Her first reaction was something akin to panic, but upon closer inspection, she realized that Diana was prone on an air mattress with the requisite blanket and pillow, obviously asleep.

Akko felt a stab of guiltiness for getting almost eaten by a wolf, but she reminded herself that it was Diana's decision to save her and she would have made an equally risky move to save Diana as well if she was put into that situation like that time when Diana was wrapped around by her Aunt's snakes.

Suppressing a yawn, Akko let herself fall back onto the chair and took a deep breath. Diana was okay, everything was okay. She was safe, Diana was next to her, and that's all that mattered.

Sleep came quickly.

And this time, it was dreamless.

Some unknown time passed when she could feel gentle hands coaxing her to wake. "Akko... Get up."

With a small dissatisfied growl, Akko waved an arm in an attempt to shoo away whoever was trying to pull her out of the comforting darkness. A strong hand grabbed her flailing arm and held it still.

"If you keep this up Akko, you're going to smack the wall next to you and get yet another broken something. I don't think you want that."

Penetrating through her foggy brain, the warning made Akko halt her movement, and only through the sheer strength of will, Akko was able to open an eye.

Diana was sitting on the edge of the bed, one of her hands holding fast but gently to Akko's right wrist. Dressed in an olive green tee shirt and black slacks, Diana looked half amused and half annoyed.

"Good morning Akko."

"I was in the bed?"

"Atsuko informed me that she had to knock you out because you were being a danger to yourself. She placed you next to me when she saw you in an awkward position."

"Ah, she did?" Akko instinctively held a ghost of a pain in her head. "She did?" she blinked before yelling at top of her lungs. "SHE DID THIS TO ME!"

"I told you, you were being stubborn." Atsuko appeared beside them. She wore a white thick uniform, bulletproof, zipped tight up her throat and gleaming gloves made out of plastic rubber.

Akko was confused at first at the wardrobe exchange, then she remembered she probably want to wear new clothes instead of fixing her destroyed one. Akko was disturbed at the too quiet place. "Where are the others?" she asked, glancing around.

"They are outside this small space... everyone that is."

"Small place?" Akko looked around one more time, they were in a large room that didn't seem to end. "This place is huge or did we just die?"

Atsuko gave her a narrowed look. "Are you aware of infinity mirror? It's like that."

"What no?"

"We have that back at home too, Akko," Diana said, moving closer to Akko so their shoulders touched. "It is a pair of parallel _mirrors_ , which create a series of smaller reflections that appear to recede into an infinite distance. We are inside a small space that hosted that kind of trick, making you think this room is huge."

"Ah, okay," Akko said, indulging herself with Diana's proximity.

"As I said," Atsuko cleared her throat. "Everyone is outside. Earthens and Mirrors. The Princess has played the ambassadors for you; you should get out now and tell your side of the story."

Diana and Akko stared at each other dumbfounded. Hours earlier, the Mirrors were trying to kill them, in the span of time while they recover from the fight, the Earthens and the Mirrors were having a friendly discussion as they all seated on a huge round table. At least friendly in the standards of Mirror residents.

"Okay."

Diana and Akko emerged from the small space of infinity mirror with Atsuko in the lead, to see that the summoning was almost complete and a small gathering of people.

They eyed them, Princess Diana with her trademark crown was talking to Professor Ursula but the professor tried with all her might with how not to be distracted at the sight of her own mirror. Mirror Ursula and Mirror Croix stood respectively on their princess' left and right, carrying a regal demeanor in this meeting.

Mirror Lotte was glaring at her princess and the Earthens as though still not fully ready to trust everyone and Mirror Sucy clutching her hand reassuringly.

Sucy, who was known to be apathetic in most situations, had her jaw unhinged and visible eye opened wide but at least she wasn't scared like most of her companions were. Lotte, Jasminka, Constanze tried their best not to show fear, Hannah and Barbara were hugging each other, cowering to the amusement of their mirrors the Countesses who as always, were holding hands and throwing shy glances at one another, flushing and giggling soundly.

Mirror Amanda was barely controlling herself of not bursting into fits of crying because she couldn't believe her Earthen version was tomboyish and she was pretty proud of her femininity. Mirror Jasminka and Mirror Constanze were gently rubbing her back while Amanda was sourly annoyed at the prospect of seeing a girly version of herself with long hair.

Princess Diana heard rather than saw the trio finally move close to them. There was a habitual mischievous gaze plastered to her face and thought that she was most probably contemplating another wild hunt for yet another fantastic parallel world for a search of regalia, one that no one had ever heard of nor ever seen. She waved at them and smiled. "The Earthen Diana and Akko had risen."

Diana and Akko were compelled by everyone's stares to join the gathering, despite their wishes to not be intrusive.

"Pleasure to see you again, your Highness," Diana whispered, while looking into the eyes of a girl who looked exactly like hers. One that is haunted by an honorable duty they have to go out of bounds to fulfill. She glanced at the contemplative mirrors and asked. "How much have you told everyone?"

"We heard everything." Mirror Lotte growled sullenly. "I made a mistake to you Miss Cavendish. I'm awfully sorry."

Akko still hadn't moved on from the trauma that she went through so at the sight of Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy she wrapped her arms around Diana with a low whimper. Diana reached for her with her free hand, reassuring her that they are fine. They are all right.

"Let bygones be bygones." She said. "Akko and I—we are the forgiving sort."

"Girlfriend..." Mirror Lotte drawled, gasping and so did the rest of the mirrors. "So, in your world, you two are involved in a mating ritual." She narrowed her eyes at Atsuko and the princess. "Their reveal speaks volumes of your actions and I'm tempted to have Atsuko lynched for your trysts."

"But you may not." Princess Diana growled with an animalistic anger. "If you do, I have the right to execute all of you for treason as well. Furthermore, you have signed the agreement of nondisclosure."

"Blessed us, I suppose." Mirror Sucy said while Mirror Lotte tapped her foot in annoyance. She was bent on following the rules.

"Princess Diana has done the enlightenment; however, we presently desire a review—no, we want your side of the story." Mirror Lotte said, her face trying to be neutral but Diana could tell that she was looking for inconsistencies in the story that was provided.

Akko and Diana sat on the spare chairs on Professor Ursula's sides. Their presence helped eased their dear professor's skittishness.

All of a sudden, food materialized in front of them at the table. Questioning looks were thrown at the Princess and she gave them all a smirk.

"We must all dine now, it's appropriate for such occasion!" she said, her voice filled with mirth.

"Very well, then," Diana said, assuming the regal posture as she reached for her fork and knife. "I shall start from the beginning."

* * *

 _ **When morning**_ came and the guests had all left. The Blazing World was awakening from its long winter slumber. Sunlight streamed through the glass branches overhead, each one heavy with golden and silver buds.

Flower shaped jewels bloomed along the edges of the trail, blue and orange, red and pink, purple and white, and bird songs filled the air every morning. It was like an entirely different place than the one they had traveled through.

There seemed to be no sign of the malignant Glass that had scared them and imprisoned Diana.

Once the meeting adjourned and once breakfast was over, she suddenly felt anticlimactic and drained.

Is it time to do the summoning?" Akko asked softly.

"Yes." Atsuko turned away so she wouldn't have to see the disappointment in the girl's face. "Say your goodbyes, Earthens. You're leaving."

"Okay." The small girl went to Atsuko was standing and threw her arms around the woman's neck. There were tears; Atsuko merely stood silently.

And now, they all knew, that it was time to say goodbye to their Mirror friends return to Earth, resume their studies in Luna Nova, graduate, say goodbye to the jolly years of childhood, later become adults and form families, have children and grow old. It was the natural state of the world and Akko felt happy that most of her friends were going to settle to that order in the end.

They were going to miss the friends they made despite the fact that their first meeting they tried to kill each other.

The Earthens and Mirrors kept saying goodbye to their counterparts, giving each other pats on the back, warm hugs, and firm handshakes, even to the ones who aren't their lookalikes. They each gave each other remembrances as a token of their once in a lifetime meeting.

Although they were leaving, they felt rather happy, because, in spite of all that had happened, they had had the time of their lives.

"To think this happened because of the Princess' rendezvousing in the castle's library with her lover." The Mirror of Professor Ursula said out of the blue, she was having a conversation with her Earthen counterpart and her Italian lover and it just so happened that her voice was loud enough for everyone to turn their heads.

Atsuko squirmed at the implication while the Princess giggled, "Oh my, what a way to describe our library date."

Akko couldn't believe what she had just heard. The reason she and Diana learned of the book was also that they had a library date in Blytonburry.

"Okay, everyone to their places!" The mirror of Professor Croix clapped her hands in haste.

The Earthens stood around their positions in the magic circle that they were taught earlier. The rest of the Mirrors stood far away so the summoning wouldn't mistake them as part of the group and reel them into the other world.

Akko lifted her head and gave Atsuko permission to draw her blood with a knife, the same one that that slashed her mirror's own flesh. With steady hands, Atsuko slid the blade across Akko's palms, while holding a glass chalice beneath it, and drop by drop, her blood fell into chalice, mixing with her counterpart's.

"Is it done?" Mirror Lotte asked, her arms crossed.

Atsuko held up the horn. She was somehow drained, exhausted. "Yes."

Relief flooded into the Princess Diana's face, making her look almost like an ordinary human. "Then you must paint the glass."

Everyone watched as Atsuko painted the glass manually, perhaps too tired to use kinesis. The area turned so quiet that they could hear the brush stroking the glass.

"This is goodbye, Diana, Akko." Princess Diana said amidst the silence and the Earthens were grateful for it.

"Hectic as our encounters may be, we'll miss you." Diana curtseyed, Akko followed suit but she did a Japanese bow.

The people went silent once more. As if there were no words left to say, but Akko wanted to be sure there will be no more words left unsaid.

"Visit us sometimes," Akko said, hopeful.

"Are you kidding?" Atsuko asked, pointing the brush at her face. "This must never happen again."

Akko's face fell after getting intimidated by the blood-soaked brush. "What?"

"This has been such an adventure, Akko." Princess Diana said. "I share my lover's sentiments about not wanting this to happen again."

Akko's face became sadder as ever. She felt cool fingers fill the spaces in hers in a tight clasp. Her eyes fell to their intertwined hands before looking up at the blonde's face.

"I believe it is better this way too," Diana said.

Akko however still wanted to fight for her opinion, "But what about the books! And the mirror? Are you really going to destroy everything?"

"We will destroy every last thing." Princess Diana said, deadpanned. "Except for our memories, for they are important and we cannot part with it. We must learn, live and keep it in our hearts."

"B-but still! Why would you do that?"

"Do not blame the Princess, Earthen." Mirror Lotte chimed into the conversation. "This is part of the agreement we settled for her to buy my silence about Atsuko's sin."

Akko knew her arguments had solid rebuttals so she turned to her lover for help. "Diana!"

"We can keep a copy of the book in our world, Akko," Diana said. "We will only have to brand it as science fiction as it should be. But if they shall destroy the portals, the book shall truly be fictional."

"She's right." Princess Diana said. "The reason the book was branded as fiction was to prevent this from happening. The Author herself and the Olde Empress had a decision. However, it still leads to this. We must prevent further generations to repeat history. So as much as it pains me, I have come to a conclusion to destroy every last bit of the books and information about your existence to the Blazing World. Our worlds can never meet anymore. It should stay as it is. Parallel."

"The portal will bring you right to your school." Atsuko said where the wooden mirror of Woodward resides."

Once Atsuko had finished painting the mirror, it emanated the same familiar light that Akko saw when the portal took Diana over to the other side. It acted fast as it engulfed everyone inside in a heartbeat.

She sighed and closed her eyes, savoring the feeling of contentment that was slowly beginning to drift over her.

She was going home.

Akko took one last look at the Mirrors, especially to Atsuko and Princess Diana, whispering. "I'm going to miss you, all."


	29. Chapter 29

Chapter 29

Multiple groans met Diana's ears as she woke up in the dark storage room. Everyone was sprawled onto the floor, with the wooden mirror behind them. Diana instinctively reached for her head, to see if she suffered any concussion. But she didn't.

"Aww," Akko whimpered beside her.

Diana immediately went over to her to see if she received any injuries.

Akko's ponytail loosened. Her bangs had grown so that it fell softly around her face, and though she was thinner than she had been before the journey, Diana was glad to see that she had color in her cheeks, and some of that color, Diana hoped, was due to seeing her.

"Diana," she said and gave him a tentative smile. The sun outside the window seemed to shine especially brightly. It gave Diana's hair a halo of bright white light; it made her face glow. Akko smiled at the sight of her, and though her heart still ached for her lost friends, the love she felt for Diana was stronger than the pain. "Where are we?"

"We're home," Diana said, breathless as she took the view of the abandoned and dusty storage room.

"Its home because you are with me now," Akko smiled rather sheepishly, and Diana tightened her embrace around the shorter girl.

Before she could lose her nerve, Diana went to her and kissed her, cupping her face in her hands. Akko let out a little sob, reaching up to put her arms around her neck.

Little did they know that everyone else had gathered their bearings and had their eyes glued to them, no matter how they try not to. Professor Ursula turned slightly away, not wanting to stare. She had worried that the sight of them might make her mourn what she had lost and couldn't have with Croix, but instead, it awakened something warm and alive inside herself. She was only happy for them, and when she glanced at the rest of her students, she was glad to see that everyone felt the same way.

"Do you think it will make a good story?" Lotte asked Sucy. "The Princess and her Lady-in-waiting who fell in love on a journey to the Earth in search to find a regalia and met their witch doppelgangers?"

"It will make an excellent story," Sucy agreed and after they had given Diana and Akko another few moments to themselves. "I like that you focused on their mirrors rather than our own dork and her rival prodigy."

Lotte giggled. "They have their own story to star in. Theirs was a crazy adventure."

"Is everyone alright?" Professor Ursula asked once the lovebirds were done. She was met with consecutive answers in agreement.

Akko and Diana blushed at the notion that their friends had been waiting for their cloud nine to be over. So it didn't stop Akko from being startled to see that most of her friends were staring at her all with faces than changed from relief to disappointment.

For once in her life, Akko immediately caught on to what it meant.

"I... Sucy, Lotte, Professor, everyone, please... Oh, please forgive me!" Akko crossed the space between her and her teammates in two leaps, hugging them both and crushing their lungs.

"A-Akko!" Lotte said.

"C-can't breathe!" Sucy uttered.

"I admit I made some mistakes that lead us there. And we all nearly died. I was so afraid I brought you all there. I've been so afraid. I've never been anything but afraid." Akko said, and all of the anger, all of the fear, all of everything—it just comes pouring out of her along with tears.

Amanda rubbed her nose, subtly rubbing the tears from Akko's heartfelt speech. "Oh it's nothing, you silly! Stop crying like a child."

"Amanda! Jasminka! Constanze!" Akko then reached out to the Green team. They too, became victims of Akko's deathly grip and wet tears as she cried for a good long while. "I should have told you guys from the beginning about what Mirror Diana told me on what was waiting for us once we got there in the other world. I'm so sorry that I didn't."

She screamed, her nose running so she rubbed her arm over her face. Jasminka had to take a spare handkerchief in her pockets and wipe the Japanese girl's tears.

"I didn't want you to be afraid of the dangers over there and I thought we would all be protected because somehow I thought we would be fine." Akko then stared at her lover and the rest of her team. "And, Diana, I had to make absolutely certain that she wasn't hurt that I forgot about you guys."

"We actually know what was going to happen, Akko," Amanda said. "You have this belief that the world revolves around you and I'm not even mad. I am too, you know!"

"And you can't be blamed. We all agreed to come with." Jasminka agreed while Constanze nodded.

"Your friends are right, Akko." Professor Ursula said. "You have so much passion in your voice, and sparkle in your eyes; we can't do anything but smile at you, and follow you to make sure you wouldn't hurt yourself."

" _Sensei!_ " Akko then reached out to hug her beloved professor who believed in her from the beginning.

"Yes! Yes, Professor Ursula's right!" Barbara chimed in, attempting her best to assuage the girl's tears.

"You don't just expect that we wouldn't take the chance to save our teammate, do you?" Hannah asked.

"Yes, not at all!" Barbara said.

"No, you don't get to hug us!" Hannah quickly added, crossing her arms in an 'X' to stop Akko, seeing that she was about ambling towards them with open arms.

"Aww come on! You know you want to!"

But no matter how they stopped her, Akko still enveloped them in a manacle-like embrace, causing them to screech.

"We did it together, Akko. All of us," Lotte whispered, and Akko looked at her, finally releasing her grip on the British girls. "All of us together. We rescued Diana, we arrived home safe and sound, and we are together!"

"Yes we did," Akko said, with one last sob, she wiped her tears with her sleeve. With newfound emotion growing in her chest, she stared at Diana, red eyes meeting blue, "together."

And the thrill of that single word fires through Diana. She wouldn't exactly know what her friends had been through when they all journeyed to get her but she knew the girls had grown closer. Diana was slightly envious of that. But the good thing that came out of it was that Diana wasn't afraid anymore.

She's safe.

Akko's safe.

Everyone's safe.

And they were home.

Everyone seemed to notice the inner and silent panic attack so they all gave her a moment to breathe before everyone walked over and gave each other one group hug with Diana in the center.

Her heartbeat joined the others' in synchronization.

* * *

 _ **In the wake**_ of the Portal closing, Mirror Lotte and Mirror Sucy immediately shattered the glass. The echoes of it turned Lady Hannah and Lady Barbara squeamish but overall, the air hung thick of magic—and of despair.

The blaze turned quiet. The mirrors went on their days as if the meeting with the Earthens didn't happen. They zipped their mouths about Princess Diana's love affair as well for the blonde royal had a way to wrap events around her dainty fingers, removing their misgivings.

Atsuko and her friends spent their days and nights in the rooms they had been given during their first visit and Princess Diana's friends—the Countesses—also stayed a bit longer offering their support.

Soon, the coronation went along smoothly and other royalties from other lands and kingdoms visited and took part in the celebration. Princess Diana spent many hours with her royal advisors, discussing the terms of a new set of rules on their lands, for they all agreed that all forms of forbidden love should end.

True to her promise, Duchess Daryl threw the biggest party the Blazing World has ever seen. Princess Diana and Atsuko could have joined the revelry in the streets below, but they were content to simply be near each other, for both sensed that something precious was coming.

It was Atsuko who finally said the words, for she could not bear to pretend. "You lied about destroying all physical shreds of evidence about the book, did you not?"

Princess Diana looked away, but she could not deny it.

"I understand, you know," Atsuko said resolutely. "If I had your silver tongue I would weave stories convincing and sensibly such as yours."

She had told the Princess long before that she should not give up her lifelong dream for her; that she had proven herself too gifted in her power to not continue her training to become the Empress. But Atsuko also ached deeply to think that she might never hold her again. It was like someone was digging a hole in her and dragging out her heart, and she didn't know if she could bear the pain.

"As I had said before, you do not have to do all that you did for me. It would have been better if you could just choose to act accordingly to tradition."

Tears trickled from Princess Diana's eyes. She covered her mouth with her hands as if that would hold the emotion inside. Atsuko got up and walked the few steps to where Princess Diana was seated nearby and pulled her close. Princess Diana's shoulders shook as she cried, her face pressed against Atsuko's stomach, her arms wrapped around her waist. It was a long time before she could speak, and Atsuko kneeled down and held her hands while she listened to her.

"And what? Die of loneliness? I would not make the same mistake my poor Empress mother did. You are the only thing I've ever wanted my entire life," Princess Diana said, her voice breaking. "Although, I have dreamed of becoming an Empress since I learned my birthright, and I have always known what sacrifices it would require. There is still so much for me to learn, and I have so many questions to ask my teachers. But I love you so much. How can I give you up? How could I just choose one? I had to lie and deceive you. I have to break the rules if I want you safe. I have to learn how to please my friends and my enemies to protect us. If I have to break the rules then I must."

"You're not giving me up," Atsuko said, and she kissed her hands. "You'll always have me even when we got caught and I had to be executed."

Princess Diana's eyes welled up with tears again. She dragged one hand free and wiped them away, drawing a ragged breath, "Atsuko."

Atsuko had never before realized how much she loved the sound of her name, the way it felt to say it, the look on Atsuko's face when she heard Princess Diana call her.

"Atsuko, even if I do manage to make our love acceptable, if I become an Empress, you know what that means. I need to have an heir."

"There are other ways to procure an heir, Your Highness."

Princess Diana reached for Atsuko's cheeks and pulled them. "But I want your child inside me, no one else's!"

Atsuko winced at the pain, but she merely hugged her tighter. "Sounds like you already formed a scheme, my dear."

Princess Diana's distressed face faded into her signature mischievous smile. "You know me perhaps too well, my love. I could not possibly shock you now, which is why you knew that I told them a half-truth about burning all the books about Margaret Cavendish."

Atsuko's lips curved into a smile. This is the woman she fell in love with. "Let me offer a conjecture, you burned them all except for one?"

"Close enough. I reprinted a new one then burned the old."

Atsuko stole a kiss from her luscious lips, and her Princess did not mind. "So, about that heir, you will use witchcraft?"

"Indeed. I will observe Diana and Akko however I please and if they found the spell that could grant them a child, and then, I too, shall learn it." She showed her lover the Cavendish wand, waving I around."

"You know, Your Highness, I should tell you that the forbidden love between a lady-in-waiting and a princess is a ridiculous rule," she said bitterly.

It startled a laugh out of Princess Diana. "There is a reason for it."

"What reason?" Atsuko demanded.

Princess Diana stroked Atsuko's hair back from her face, her fingers tangling in the black strands. "Every time I look at you, Atsuko, I—" She stopped, breathless, her cheeks reddening.

"What?" Atsuko asked. The core of her was quickening.

"Every time I—I—you know I can't think. You make me stop thinking. And to have you always in close proximity would be devastating indeed." She gave a brief laugh, and when Atsuko's hand ran over her thigh, she shivered.

"You think too much," Atsuko murmured in a hoarse voice, and she pulled Princess Diana's hand from her hair and kissed her bare wrist, pushing back the sleeve of her dress. Her skin was warm and golden and unmarked. Princess Diana sighed, her whole body coming alive.

"My lies are not caught yet," she whispered, and they kissed, and kissed, and a few minutes later, they left the sitting room and went to the round chamber overlooking all the city lights, and they closed the door to another embrace under the sheets.

* * *

 _ **A/N**_

 _ **Any comments and reviews are most welcomed. I am considering on writing an epilogue next week or so. I still haven't forgotten the promise Diana made to Akko's parents when she'll visit them in Japan xD But even without that chapter, this story is complete! Thank you for all of your amazing support, I couldn't believe when I was told that I ranked first on reviews on all LWA fics (as I published this at least). have a great day/night!**_

 _ **P.S.**_

 _ **I don't know if you all read the notes but I just wanna let it out of my chest. I wrote this fic for fun and it was the most amazing moment in my life. This was my first fanfic and I finally got to finish it. My muse was in the form of my lover but we parted ways in the middle. I know it's not a good excuse for my writing, but I was in a crazy place and I think the fic was influenced by that low period of my life. I lost a lot of good friends too, but now, I learned that I wouldn't be settling for less.**_

 _ **Some of you all follow me on tumblr, and I have mentioned that I'm not done yet writing LWA fics. Next week, or next month I will start with the Serial Killer Sucy vs Detective Diana. It's different than what I've written so far and I hope that would be a good thing to keep the LWA fandom alive. Peace out!**_


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